Running for Christ

Hebrews chapter 12 address the mindset that we can have as we follow Christ - we can view ourselves as being part of a spiritual race, where we are running for the Lord, not competing against others, but against ourselves, seeking to triumph over the power of sin and the temptations of this world. We can read these words:
1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Today marks the beginning of the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris, and athletes from throughout the world are gathering together to showcase their incredible skills, the result of months and years of training and discipline. 

And, as we commonly see in the Olympics, there are athletes who profess faith in Jesus Christ and capitalize on the platform that God has given them.

One of the brightest-shining Christian athletes competing in this year's Olympics is Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone.  She is the on the cover of the summer issue of Sports Spectrum Magazine, which features a number of Olympic athletes.

An article on the Sports Spectrum website from early July stated:

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone put her hands over her mouth when she saw the time: 50.65. Even she could barely believe she’d broken her own world record in Sunday’s 400-meter hurdles final, the last race at the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team Trials.

It went on to say:

Speaking with NBC immediately after the race, McLaughlin-Levrone pointed to her faith in God — like she’s done so many times during her remarkable career — as the only way to explain what she’d just done.

“Honestly, praise God, I was not expecting that,” she said. “Anything is possible in Christ. I’m just amazed, baffled and in shock.”

Sydney won that flat 400m at the U.S. Track and Field Championships last year, but missed the world championships as the result of an injury to her knee. This was a test of faith for her, as the article points out. According to the article, on the Sports Spectrum Podcast in January, she related: “I think just this past season of being injured, not being able to perform at my best, and really having to lean on the Lord in all of this was just a great reminder that not everything is always going to be perfect,” adding, “Not everything’s going to go your way.”

Back in 2022, Movieguide ran a story about McLaughlin's Christian faith, stating that prior to the Tokyo Olympics...

McLaughlin was 21-years-old and young in her Christian faith. However, in a recent interview with Sports Spectrum, McLaughlin revealed that her goal was to glorify God, win or lose.

“I didn’t know what was gonna happen in the race, but I knew where my intentions were,” she explained. “Regardless of what happens, whether you win or lose, they’re going to ask you about it. And you’re going to say the reality: ‘God gave me the opportunity to be here, and I’m really grateful for that and all the glory is for Him, regardless of what happens.”

Despite being young in her faith, McLaughlin said that a strong community of believers, especially her now fiance, Andre Levrone Jr., helped her face the world stage with confidence.

The article contained some of her Christian testimony, McLaughlin-Levrone said: "​​I grew up in a Christian household. I went to church every Sunday. My parents raised us on biblical principles, and for a long time, I always knew that God existed and I knew that he definitely played a big role in my life, but there was no relationship.”

The Movieguide piece went on to relate:

McLaughlin noted that while she grew up in church and hearing the Gospel taught, it did not become personal until a few years ago.

“Honestly, I didn’t even understand the importance or the purpose of Jesus and how all that played out. So it was a lot more of religious just right and wrong versus true relationship and connection and intimacy,” she explained. “But I didn’t think there was any freedom in that. And I was afraid that in doing that I would be handing over my individuality and my identity. So I kind of put that off and just walked in the world and lived a very secular life and it never fulfilled me. It never sustained me and I could vividly hear God in a couple of instances just be like, ‘Are you done? Are you ready to give your life over to me? Are you ready to let me have control?’ And I would literally tell Him ‘no.'”

So, as you watch Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and perhaps other Christian athletes compete in the Games, we can remember our own spiritual "race."  The apostle Paul describes the Christian walk really as a race, and we are called to be involved in spiritual training.  We are to be disciplined in the caring for our souls, making sure that our hearts are devoted to Him and our minds are full of the Word of God, so that we make decisions that are in keeping with our identity in Christ. 

We can also keep in mind that we are placed here for a reason, and our lives are to glorify God. We can exercise contentment in Him and exhibit a reliance on the presence of Jesus within us. We are not accidents and our lives are not intended to be random.  We can live with a sense of meaning because Jesus has saved us and desires to express His will through us.