Woot! Woot!! The Olympic games are here! Are you watching? Wow! There are some amazing stories out there...and some great performances. What’s your favorite so far? I’ve loved the women’s rugby seven team from the US. I mean what a comeback. Going down to almost certain defeat in the last minute and then breaking loose to win the match! Amazing! And how about Simone Biles and the American Gymnastics team? Redemption indeed! And don’t forget about ping pong! That ping pong venue is electric! And we haven’t even started my favorite...track and field...yet! I can’t wait!
When I was a little guy, I was so inspired by the summer Olympic games of 1972, that I organized a little “Backyard Olympics” of my own. I remember ordering a stopwatch from the back of a Boy’s Life magazine, and as soon as it arrived, the Games were on!
One of my favorite memories was the way our imaginations soared as we invented ways to make each event happen. I remember sitting up in a tree house all morning trying to figure out how we were going to set up the high jump competition. We had already figured out how we were going to raise the bar. That was easy. The trouble was trying to figure out what to use for the landing pad. Then, right around noon, something came to me: WE COULD USE MOM AND DAD’S MATRESS FOR THE LANDING PAD! What a brilliant idea! Now we just had to wait for a time when Mom and Dad were gone. It happened that next night. It was Wednesday and Mom and Dad both had a meeting at the church. We knew we could count on you God! You always come through!
And so, when Mom and Dad were at the church planning Vacation Bible School, the entire neighborhood was in Mom and Dad’s bedroom, trying to help me get the mattress out on the back lawn for our Olympic High Jump competition.
I remember it as if it were yesterday. It had come down to two of my best friends: Jeff and Rob. One short and springy, and the other tall and lanky. And just as Rob cleared the bar using his new technique called the Fosbury Flop, we all froze as we heard my mom scream: “Brook Robert McBride what in the world do you think you’re doing!”
I do not know how it happened, but in the next 20 seconds the entire neighborhood cleared out of our backyard and the only one standing was me! I do believe we broke an Olympic record that day for clearing out a neighborhood.
My punishment? Cleaning dishes for a month!
But it was more than worth the price: Rob Risinger clearing 5’1” to win the competition! I mean that was priceless. (To be honest, Rob kind of reminded me of Stephen Noderoscik
(AKA: Pommel Horse guy from the US)! You gotta love it! (If you want to read a cool story about him check this out!
What I love the most about the Olympics is all the wonderful redemption stories that happen. At the Olympics we see what ABC Sports used to call “The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!” But if we’re lucky we will also see the inspiration of watching someone pick themselves up from defeat and rise again to victory. That, my friends, is why I watch! I love comeback stories!
Speaking of a comeback story, if you watched the US men’s Olympic Team perform, you saw that story play out in the amazing story of Brody Malone. Brody’s story is really one of a young kid who had to overcome losing his mother to breast cancer at age 12 (See story here) and then just a year ago blowing out his knee in such a way that many doctors weren’t sure he would even walk again. But he perseveres and makes it to the Olympics! Great story, right?
Well, it’s not over. His qualifying round in the Olympics was devastating. He totally choked! And although his team made it to the finals, Brody lost out a chance to compete in the all-around competition. But, and here’s the part you need to hear, he didn’t quit there. He kept plugging away. And in the team finals, he helped the men to their first Olympic medal in quite a while! Not exactly a fairy tale ending, but one that inspires me to keep trying.
And what does this have to do with our Christian story? Well, a whole bunch, as it turns out. The Christian story is a story about a God who just will not quit. The Christian story is a story of heartache and conflict. One where the protagonist, God, almost gets to the point of giving up on us. But in the end, God doesn’t. As Donald Miller put it in his book, “Storyline 2.0,” “As a writer, I see the Bible as a story. It’s a story about unrequited love. It’s a story about a God who loves a world that, for the most part, ignores God. It’s a sad story. A frustrating story, but it has a great ending. In the end, God wins humanity back.”
Thanks for keeping at it, Brody, and Simone (talk about redemption...wow!)! In your efforts and your show of heart, you have reminded us that our story, however broken, is still worth fighting for. For we are all worth redeeming!
Shalom,
Your pastor and friend, still trying to figure out a way to set up that high jump pad in my back yard, Brook
PS: Just so you know, my final jump in the 1972 backyard Olympics was 2’11” ...not bad considering I was just shy of four feet at the time. My approach, however, wasn’t the Fosbury flop. Dad had taught me the Western Roll! Where did he show me, you ask? Well, let’s just say that we waited until Mom wasn’t around!
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