Intersections: Where Faith Meets Life – by Bob Weathers

Last month’s Olympic Games had all the drama. All the greatness. All the masterful feats of strength and prowess. And all the egos to go with it.

Bob Weathers

The athletes are the best of the best. So no one actually expects to lose. And that was the case with Lolo Jones, America’s best bet for a gold medal in the women’s 100-meter hurdles. A three-time NCAA champion and winner at the world championships, her Olympic debut was highly anticipated in Beijing. So Jones, and most everyone else watching the races on Aug. 19, assumed she would win the gold in the 100-meter hurdles. As she prepared for the race, she mouthed to the crowd that she was going to win. Everyone believed it.

As soon as they left the blocks, Jones outpaced her opponents. She was in the lead of the sprint, clearly the one who would win the gold. It would all be true, all a reality. Her greatness would be vindicated.

She could feel the medal. It was nearly in reach. And then it happened. She clipped the ninth hurdle with her heel. And in one irretrievable instant she fell away from the gold, from first place to seventh. Fellow American and friend Dawn Harper won the race and the gold, but the shock was almost more than Jones could bear. She dropped to the ground and covered her face in disbelief.

And that is the hazard of ego. No matter how great we are or how strong we believe ourselves to be, we are always just one stumble away from failure. It just takes one hurdle to trip us.

The apostle Paul, who was evidently a fan of the athletic events of his day, especially the games held in Corinth, consistently saw in them images of spiritual reality. He admonished the young Christians to “run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24). And he added advice that should be considered by every ego-driven athlete or Christian: “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you do not fall!” (10:12).

Because that’s how easily we can get knocked off our pace by one sin, one hurdle that we think could never take us down. One stumble, and the race is lost.