The Winter Olympics are upon us. A time where world class athletes fly down mountains at speeds of 90 mph, jump 50 feet into the sky to perform tricks, and use a broom to sweep the ice in front of a granite stone as it moves towards a circle. While curling may be the most unathleticly challenging sport in history, it is still fun to make fun of.
What’s crazy about the Olympics is how people devout their entire lives to training for one event, an event that may not last longer than 10 seconds. Some athletes, such as the hockey players, get a little more playing time, but most Olympic events do not last longer than a day. They go through months and years of training, eating well, painful falls, and mental determination all for one day.
Shaun White is the most exciting part of the Olympics to me. And I know he has taken a painful fall or two.Or two million.
I laugh every time an announcer talks about how an Olympic athlete has “really fought and worked hard to get here.” Well, duh, I don’t think anyone in the world could just waltz up to an Olympic event and be able to compete in the Olympics, even if the said event is Curling.
I know, you may need a break from reading this blog because of the intensity of this picture of Curling
The apostle Paul, a Gold Medalist when it comes to bringing the Kingdom, had this to say in 1 Corinthians 9:
“24Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
25Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
Interestingly, Corinth was the home of the bi-annual Isthmian Games. This, behind the Olympics in Athens, was the second biggest athletic competition of the Ancient World. Paul knew the Corinthians would be able to relate to the way athletes train for competition, and as modern Americans we can relate just as well.
We tend to think that everything should have a quick fix. A microwave can fix our food in less than a minute, we can google search anything we need to know in 2 seconds, and cliff notes gets countless college students through school every year. Unfortunately, the things that really matter in life don’t usually have a quick fix. There is no magic pill to repair a marriage, there is no machine or buttons you can press to commune with God, and getting in shape cannot happen over night.
Olympians train so hard and work for years for an event that will only last a few minutes. How much more, than, should we work on our relationship with God, which will last an eternity! How much more should we pursue the souls of other people, so that they can join with us in eternal celebration. This deep relationship with God does not happen overnight. There are times when the training and the falls can get so hard you want to quit, but remember the prize you are pursuing and fighting for will be worth so much more than the pain you may be experiencing now.
Seek after God. Seek after Him with persistence, seek after Him with determination, and seek after Him with all your Heart. If you do, your reward will be far greater than a gold medal.
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