EVEN THE STRONG BELIEVE
We often hear the refrain, “Religion and faith are for the weak”. The Olympics certainly put a dent in that argument. Yes, we don’t need the Olympics to see the hollowness of that statement because it is a good example of the ‘Ad hominem’ logical fallacy where a person refuses to look at the integrity of a statement citing perceived or real weaknesses in people who advance a statement. But watching and listening to some of the Olympians was inspiring.
Hosting the very best in the world at Tokyo, only the strongest went home with a medal. If the argument that only the weak believe in God were true, there would be no mention of God or of faith among these elite winners. Yet many went on to declare their faith in Christ and reliance on God for their sport and their lives.
Allyson Felix became the most decorated US Olympic track and field star of all time, surpassing the legendary Carl Lewis with 11 medals. Only Paavo Nurmi of Finland with 12 medals has more. For her, life and faith has intersected from a very young age,
“I came to know Jesus Christ as my personal Savior at a very young age. Ever since then, I have continually been striving to grow in my relationship with God. I was nowhere close to the perfect child. I had my share of difficult times along with some disappointing choices that I made, but thankfully God never stops loving me.”
Sudanese immigrant to the US, Athing Mu started breaking records at a very young age and at nineteen, she took home the 800m women’s gold medal. She has no confusion about the purpose of her life,
“As a follower of Christ, our main goal is to live in the image of Jesus in order to connect to God and ‘get to God,”
To be able to bring home the focus to be the best in the world, yet never lose focus of who you are as a person is truly admirable for a nineteen year old. Yet, others like Kyle Snyder echo that statement as well. Perhaps the most decorated American wrestler of all time and prior Olympic gold medalist, he had to settle for silver this time around. His viewpoint is no different,
“As big as the sport is in my life, wrestling doesn’t define me,” “God alone defines me. I’m always consistent with my Scripture study and prayer, and during the pandemic I was able to continue to grow and focus on God and hear what He wanted to teach me.”
Sydney McLaughlin lit the 400m hurdles with a world record and a gold medal and has never been shy about her faith,
“– what and honor it is to be able to represent not only my country, but also the kingdom of God, what I have in Christ is far greater than what I have or don’t have in life. I pray my journey may be a clear depiction of submission & obedience to God.”
Returning home with 5 gold medals in swimming was Caleb Dressel, who found the strength of God in his journey as an Olympian and as a person,
“I really learned to see the light at the end of the tunnel and trust what God is doing, whether it be a rough point in your life or a top pinnacle in your life. You’ve just got to take pauses and really trust what He’s doing.”
There are other examples, but one of the most enduring images was that of the Fijian rugby team- tough men in a tough sport, worshipping God after defeating the favored New Zealand in the finals. To dismiss Christianity as a strut for the weak is intellectual dishonesty. Rather, exploring the merits of the claims that Christianity makes will surprise the most dismissive critic.
Ref: https://sportsspectrum.com/sport/olympics/
