Perseverance

As I type the name Derek Redmond, most of you probably have no idea who he is. Most people have no idea what his story is, until you hear it or read about it. Then, it all comes back to your memory.

Derek Redmond trained most of his life for one moment. That moment was to take place in 1992 in Barcelona, Spain. Derek was a world class sprinter who was one of the favorites to win the 400m sprint race. And that moment is what he will always be remembered for.

You see, Derek did not win the race, nor did he come in 2nd, 3rd or 4th place. But instead, he finished dead last....way behind everyone else in what could be the slowest time ever ran in the Olympics. So why is this so memorable?

About 150m's into the race Derek heard a loud "pop" and then fell to the ground in excruciating pain. His hamstring had tore. There was a groan from the crowd and then silence from it as everyone stared wondering what had happened.

The rest of the sprinters had already passed the finish line, and people with stretchers were on their way out to carry Derek off the track. Then, Derek got up and started to hop on one leg to finish the race that he had started. Suddenly, from the crowd, emerged Derek's father on to the track to help him get to the finish line to a standing ovation of 65,000 people.

This my friends, is perseverance.

What is there in our lives that we have been trying to accomplish that seem so close yet so far away? Are we seeking help? Are we leaning on God to get us to that finish line? Sometimes, it is not about finishing in 1st place. Sometimes, it is just about finishing the race.

Here is the video version of what happened that day in Barcelona: