On quitting...

"I get knocked down
But I get up again
You're never gonna keep me down"- "Tubthumper" by Chumbawamba

Not long after that, Jesus went to the village Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman's only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, "Don't cry." Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, "Young man, I tell you: Get up." The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother. - Luke 7:11-15 (The Message)

"Never, never, never give up" - Winston Churchill

I run a lot of races. Not very many short ones, but lots of medium-distance and longer ones. Frequently, someone will fall down- either from exhaustion or jostling in the pack or just not paying attention. But, I have never seen anyone fall down in a race and get back up and win, especially not in a very short race. Not, that is, until now. The video below is from the Women's Big Ten track and field championships a few weeks ago. Watch as Minnesota's Heather Dorniden falls during the 600, gets back up, and wins her heat.



This is a really rare occurence - think about it. In a field full of elite athletes, a wrong step or a missed breath can be the difference between first place and last. So, to not only pop back up, but come back and win your heat, is really a minor miracle. And it seems like Miss Dorniden recognizes that. In an interview for "Down the Backstretch", Dorniden gives all the glory for her victory to Christ.

Why not? We know he can do it. In the story from Luke, he brought a man back from the dead. If he can use a 600 meter race to bring glory to himself, he can use something in your life or mine. If he can bring a man back from the dead, he can certainly resurrect whatever it is in my life that I think is dead or gone or unforgiveable. No matter where we are in life, no matter how far we've fallen, Christ can bring us back. What a great story of redemption. Never, never, never give up.