The Women's All-Around gymnastics competition last night again illustrated why the Olympics keeps me glued to my television set, cheering and tearing up at the same time. Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson from the U.S. won the gold and silver medals. They were the favorites going into the competition; and despite the immense pressure, we could see their mental strength as they both gave strong routines in every rotation. They fulfilled what they set out to do; and from the moment they finished to the moment they stood on the medals podium, we could see the flood of emotions release, after years of sacrifice, hard-work, and pressure. What can we do but stand and applaud, and offer them their well-deserved admiration and respect.
And of course, we can't talk about the Olympics without mentioning Michael Phelps. The man who has the possibility of winning 8 gold medals in these Olympics has more than met all expectations so far. He has not only won the gold medal in 6 of his 6 completed races so far; he has done each and every one of them in world record time. Every time he does it, I ask myself, "How does he do it?" How does a person, under all that expectation and pressure, so overwhelmingly succeed? With his grueling schedule of race after race, he just goes out and does what he sets out to do.
And above all that, these showed great sportsmanship and are very likeable people. That is why we are proud to call them our champions. As in the story of David and Goliath, Goliath was referred to as a "champion". He was the one who represented his nation and fought for them. By agreeing to fight Goliath, David became Israel's champion. In a similar way, these Olympic athletes become our champions, as they represent their respective countries in the various sports.
Overall, I recognize that why I admire these Olympians and why I am drawn to watch them and cheer for them, is because I see them exhibiting characteristics such as discipline and hard-work. They were not arrogant, even after winning. They would even speak graciously about those they competed against. These are actually the characteristics of our heavenly Father, who has created each one of us in His own image. Scripture expounds the virtues of discipline, humility, grace, and love; and it teaches us to avoid characteristics such as arrogance and laziness. So, really, we just cannot help but be drawn towards being who we were created to be, a reflection of God our Creator.
Friday, August 15, 2008
More Olympics
The Women's All-Around gymnastics competition last night again illustrated why the Olympics keeps me glued to my television set, cheering and tearing up at the same time. Nastia Liukin and Shawn Johnson from the U.S. won the gold and silver medals. They were the favorites going into the competition; and despite the immense pressure, we could see their mental strength as they both gave strong routines in every rotation. They fulfilled what they set out to do; and from the moment they finished to the moment they stood on the medals podium, we could see the flood of emotions release, after years of sacrifice, hard-work, and pressure. What can we do but stand and applaud, and offer them their well-deserved admiration and respect.
And of course, we can't talk about the Olympics without mentioning Michael Phelps. The man who has the possibility of winning 8 gold medals in these Olympics has more than met all expectations so far. He has not only won the gold medal in 6 of his 6 completed races so far; he has done each and every one of them in world record time. Every time he does it, I ask myself, "How does he do it?" How does a person, under all that expectation and pressure, so overwhelmingly succeed? With his grueling schedule of race after race, he just goes out and does what he sets out to do.
And above all that, these showed great sportsmanship and are very likeable people. That is why we are proud to call them our champions. As in the story of David and Goliath, Goliath was referred to as a "champion". He was the one who represented his nation and fought for them. By agreeing to fight Goliath, David became Israel's champion. In a similar way, these Olympic athletes become our champions, as they represent their respective countries in the various sports.
Overall, I recognize that why I admire these Olympians and why I am drawn to watch them and cheer for them, is because I see them exhibiting characteristics such as discipline and hard-work. They were not arrogant, even after winning. They would even speak graciously about those they competed against. These are actually the characteristics of our heavenly Father, who has created each one of us in His own image. Scripture expounds the virtues of discipline, humility, grace, and love; and it teaches us to avoid characteristics such as arrogance and laziness. So, really, we just cannot help but be drawn towards being who we were created to be, a reflection of God our Creator.
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