“The man who won gold but lost God”

“The man who won gold but lost God” The Times, June 27, 2007

On September 25, 2000, Jonathan Edwards of England won a gold medal in the triple jump in the Sydney Olympics. In his kitbag he carried, among other items, a tin of sardines. Not because he loved them so well, or to give him a competitive edge, but to symbolize the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5,000. According to the Times, Edwards faith had been “fundamental to his identity” since his youth. After winning the gold and retiring from his sport, he had a prominent role on the BBC program, “Songs of Praise” and often touted his faith.
But then he began to have doubts. According to the Times, Edwards has gone from a man who refused to play his sport on Sunday because of his strong beliefs, to one who believes “that the Bible is not literal truth, but literal falsehood” and is “to all intents, and purposes, an atheist.”
If you want to look up this story on the Times website, you will find page after page of comments as to “Why?” the change. It is not my intention here to answer that question, but rather use this example as a warning to us.
All men have doubts on occasion. They sometimes come because we have a tragic, life changing event. Job had several of these in a short time span. He handled it well at first, but questions came. Later he had to confess, “I have uttered what I did not understand, Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.”(Job 42:3). In many instances, our doubts come from lack of knowledge. This may be from failure to know and understand God’s word, or as in Job’s case, our inability to know what God knows and see what He sees.”
Also, doubts can come when we face a change in environment. That seems to have been a factor for Edwards, when he became a media personality and was no longer training long hours and in constant contact with his family. This reminds us of the scripture, “Do not be deceived: “Evil company corrupts good habits.” (1 Cor. 15:33).
Furthermore, doubts can come from one being tempted(See James 1:12-16). It might be easy for some to discard God when they see him as a barrier to the lifestyle they desire. Like Joseph, we need to be strong when these trials come.
Too, doubts may come from questions that we cannot answer. In such cases, we need to diligently explore God’s word seeking the answers. They won’t come from “science, falsely so called”(1 Tim. 6:20-KJV) or the “wisdom of the world.”(1 Cor. 1:20- Study the context.)
If we have doubts, whatever the source, we must be careful to feed our faith and not our doubts. Remember, “The dog we feed, is the one that will lead.” The source of our faith is God’s Word (Romans 10:17). The gospel will strengthen our faith because “… in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” (Rom. 1:17). The greatest thing that can increase our faith is a study of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus from the Gospels. If He lives, and He does, Christianity stands. Otherwise it falls. Let us study, and “Draw close to God” so that He will draw close to us. Also, let us pray to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”(Luke 17:5). David Courington

Baby Lila

Now what fit Gramps with a blog wouldn't put up a picture of a new grandchild for the whole world to see. Ain't she puRRRRRRRty! Hey, and that Granna ain't bad either.

Oct. 11 Update

It is hard to believe it has been a month since I posted. I don't have time to write much now, but I didn't want any of you readers to think I had died. Getting ready for our meeting at Sylvan Springs(October 21-24 with David Powell), 2 weekends of camp board meetings, family things, regular church work, etc. has kept me unusually busy for the fall. And tomorrow, Lord willing, we are supposed to have a new grandbaby. Please pray that Kim and Lila will do well. We had all the kids and grands at the house Tuesday night and it is already quite a crowd, but what fun. The more the merrier. Have a great day.