Skip to main content

"...she was one of the fastest long-distance racers in the country."

 

A thought by Max Lucado from his book, You Are Never Alone (p. 95). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.)

This is a great story.

Max says, "Ask those who watched Kayla Montgomery run, and they will tell you that Kayla was a steady runner, a sturdy runner. Whip thin and determined, she was one of the fastest long-distance racers in the country. Trained eyes took note of her stride and strong finish. Her performance on the high school squad in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, caught the attention of coaches, competitors, and colleges. She set distance records, won state titles, competed in nationals, and eventually landed an athletic scholarship to Lipscomb University in Nashville, Tennessee.

"Had you watched her run, you would have been impressed."

He goes on, "Here is what you never would have imagined: she ran with no feeling in her legs. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis at the age of fifteen. The disease is an autoimmune disorder that strictly targets the myelin sheath of the nerves, affecting the brain and spine. Heat sensitivity is one of many possible symptoms of MS. When Kayla overheats, her MS symptoms flare up, leaving her numb from the waist down.

"Still she wanted to run. She told her coach, 'I want to run, and I want to run fast.' And she did. At one time she was ranked twenty-first in the nation.

"The numbness would begin to set in after the first-mile marker. After that she relied on the momentum, as if on autopilot, to keep moving. Running was doable. Stopping? That was another story. She would cross the finish line with no ability to decelerate.

"For this she depended entirely on one man, her coach. He was a fixture at the races, shouting, encouraging, and prodding, but his greatest contribution was catching. He caught Kayla. He would stand at the finish line awaiting her. She ran right into his arms. She didn’t slow down. He didn’t move. It was no small collision. When he finally was able to halt her forward progress, he would lift her five-feet-one-inch frame in a heap and carry her off the track.

"Over and over she could be heard saying, 'My legs! My legs! Where’d they go? Please help me. Please help me.'

"Over and over the coach assured, 'It’s okay. I got you. I got you."

"He would carry her to a safe spot and give her water and ice. Gradually her body temperature would lower, and the feeling in her legs would return."

Max then says, "This was his pledge to her. 

"This is God’s pledge to us."

We are not in this race of life alone. There is a Friend who is with us all the way and for sure he will be at the end, ready to catch us. Please, please, will you acknowledge that you need him, would you open door of your life and ask him to come in? Would you acknowledge that you need God in your life? Would you?

Yes, yes!

 




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

“There’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.”

A thought by Bob Goff from his book, Everybody, Always: Becoming Love in a World Full of Setbacks and Difficult People ( p. 41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)   Have you ever built a sand castle or maybe a Lego castle?   Have you? Bob says, “We actually build castles all the time, out of our jobs and our families and the things we’ve purchased. Sometimes we even make them out of each other. Some of these castles are impressive too. Lots of people come to admire what we’ve built over the course of our lives and tell us what great castles we have. But Jesus told His friends we weren’t supposed to spend our lives building castles. He said He wanted us to build a kingdom, and there’s a big difference between building a castle and building a kingdom.” Bob goes on, “You see, castles have moats to keep creepy people out, but kingdoms have bridges to let everyone in. Castles have dungeons for people who ha...
Post a Comment
Read more

“God does big things with small deeds.”

A thought by Max Lucado (2011-05-02) from his book, Cure for the Common Life (p. 115). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.) I don’t know how you feel about what you are doing and how it can make a difference.   You may feel that it is so small and not even worth the effort. Max says, “Begin. Just begin! What seems small to you might be huge to someone else. Just ask Bohn Fawkes. During World War II, he piloted a B-17. On one mission he sustained flak from Nazi antiaircraft guns. Even though his gas tanks were hit, the plane did not explode, and Fawkes was able to land the plane. “On the morning following the raid, Fawkes asked his crew chief for the German shell. He wanted to keep a souvenir of his incredible good fortune. The crew chief explained that not just one but eleven shells had been found in the gas tanks, none of which had exploded. “Technicians opened the missiles and found them void of explosive cha...
Post a Comment
Read more

"Lie 2: The more you worry about it, the better your odds of avoiding it."

A thought by Louie Giglio in his book,   Winning the War on Worry    (p. 5). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon to buy the book.) Here is another lie that the Enemy uses with us. And Louie says, "This is a tricky lie. Yes, we often have cause for concern and preparation. But the Enemy wants you to believe that if you worry or fret over a certain outcome long enough, you can keep something bad from happening." But this is so important to realize. He says, "The reality is worrying has never once prevented something negative from happening. Planning might. Prayer has. But worry never will." He continues, "The Enemy tells you that by worrying about a situation (or every situation) you can make your tomorrow better. Really, worry just robs you of today. Jesus implored us: 'I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body mor...
Post a Comment
Read more