Ironman
This past Sunday Louisville played host to the Ironman competition. For those of you who don’t know, the Ironman challenges athletes to swim over 2 miles, then jump on a bike and ride like 120+ miles, and for the grand finale run a 26 mile marathon. I know, it seems insane, but there were over 2,000 people that gave it a try last Sunday.
It was pretty cool to see all the people riding down the road except for the fact that it basically shut down the only highway we have here in Prospect. The race went by our church building twice so people trying to get in and out was a disaster. it totally turned out city upside-down for a day and there parts of the Ironman course weaving through every part of Oldham county. It was all pretty cool.
But, what amazed me the most was how many people were willing to sit along the road just to cheer on athletes people as they passed.
The race in it’s entirety is over 150 miles, and took some people 15 hours to complete, and yet people stood by the road all day just to give the racers a glimpse of encouragement. I mean you think about the amount of time the athletes saw each of their supporters during the race, and you’ll realize that their encouragement was gone in the blink of an eye. It passed by in seconds and then the racers were on their own again.
I have to admit that at first I thought these supprters had lost their gourds! Sitting outside on a 90+ degree alongside a big strip of asphalt just to clap for a few passing bikers. Come on! But the more I thought about it the more I admired these people. They knew that they wouldn’t be encouraging racers all day, but they sat still, and were vigilant because they knew eventually they would get to.
Let me wrap up by saying this. We as Christians have a great opportunity to use our faith to encourage others. We may not get to do it every day, but if we remain patient, stay the course, and never leave our post, the opportunities will come. They may be few and far between, but they could make a huge difference in someone’s life.
# CJ on August 30th, 2007
what’s up dude, have you guys added someone to your family yet. I listened to the times. I liked it. I’m listening to your new song on pure volume now. did you write it? Alright dude, talk to you later. Hope things are going well for you.