And the Winner is ...

You can call me an old softy, sentimental in my old age or just extremely patriotic but my eyes water and I get a lump in my throat as our Canadian flag is raised, our national anthem is played and our Canadian champions are on top of the podium sporting new gold medals. I almost think I should be standing at attention in my living room and as it comes to the last few notes I begin to cheer along with the rest of Canada. I am proud of our athletes at the 2010 Winter Olympics who with great odds and under intense pressure are one of the top three winners in their particular field.

Canada would not want me as an official judge at these games. I would be much too lenient. I would award gold metals to all the participants except to those who cheated. I would award their best efforts. I would cheer on the fact the athletes rose very early in the morning for training, and went to bed early for the required amount of rest. They gave up junk food and drank high protein meal supplements. Family vacations centered around tournaments, qualifying heats, and watching the giant clock or score board.

From every country represented, these sports warriors gave much in time, energy and money for the thrill of being haled the best, fastest or strongest. As each competitor races, their marks are tallied and they may even place until the next person, in the next run usurps their title by beating them with a few thousandths of a second or a single point.

If gold medals were given out for effort and sheer determinations, then parents who took their children to the rink every Saturday should be the recipient. If we are rewarding the brave efforts of the competitors, then why not honour the family whose child has a crippling disease. In many cases, this child will never become the best athlete, nor will they attain to a nobel peace prize because of their work in thermal physics. Yet every morning, the family rises up and pushes through another day. Days filled with intense emotion, excruciating pain and seeing their financial resources used up. Days ending with them exhausted and ready to flop into bed, only to enter the race again at six the next morning. Now, they deserve a gold medal, every day.

The race we are called to doesn’t last for just minutes, a few periods, qualifying heats, or the finish line on certain tracks. We are all in the race of life. The training and passion start when we are first conceived and draws to a finish when we close our eyes in death. The apostle Paul was well versed in the early Greek Olympics. He saw the valiant efforts of the best rewarded with a laurel on their heads, while those who didn’t make it walked away with their heads hanging in shame. He thought of God who is the truest, fairest and greatest judge and wrote, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it…. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown.” (1 Cor. 9:24, 25)

In the marathon of life, as you cross the finish line, God just doesn’t want to give you a leafy laurel or a shiny medallion. He wants to give you life everlasting. If we race with His pleasure, the benefits are out of this world. To become a member of God’s team, you must meet His qualifying prerequisites. First, Admit you have not followed the rules of His game (Life). Jesus lived and died by the rules so we would have a chance to win the ultimate goal, a restored relationship with God. Three days later, Jesus came back to life proving He had won. Choose to make Jesus your Coach by acknowledging the price He paid so you can join His championship lineup. Wear your team colours proudly and let others know that you Believe!

Every athlete’s dream is to hear his or her name broadcast over the loud speaker, and flashed across the nation heralding he or she is a champion. Now, I invite you to another stadium. There you stand, you have followed your Coach and the game book faithfully. You have run well, fought hard and have now crossed the finish line of Life. Jesus stands, and in front of the whole universe he announces, “He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels.” (Rev. 3:5)

“Now will everybody please stand and let us welcome our newest champion. I introduce to you …” then Jesus looks right at you and calls out your name.

Better than an Olympic medal? I think so.