Interesting article

Below is an excerpt from an article which recently ran in the London Times. It is an interview with recently retired Triple Jumper – Jonathan Edwards. Edwards’ life changed in 1995, when he set three world and seven British records, achieving the unprecedented feat of two world records in his first two jumps of the final of the World Championships in Gothenburg. His 18.29 metres that day remains the world record. His wind-assisted 18.43, to win the European Cup in Lille, is the longest triple jump on record.

“I never doubted my belief in God for a single moment until I retired from sport,” he says. “Faith was the reason that I decided to become a professional athlete, in the same way that it was fundamental to every decision I made. It was the foundation of my existence, the thing that made everything else make sense. It was not a sacrifice to refuse to compete on Sundays during my early career because that would imply that athletics was important in and of itself. It was not. It was always a means to an end: glorifying God.
“But when I retired, something happened that took me by complete surprise. I quickly realised that athletics was more important to my identity than I believed possible. I was the best in the world at what I did and suddenly that was not true any more. With one facet of my identity stripped away, I began to question the others and, from there, there was no stopping. The foundations of my world were slowly crumbling.”

This is a cautionary note for those of us who are engaged with people of sport. They may be saying all the right things in public, while internally they are dealing with crippling doubts and confusion. The difference between Edwards and thousands of others may simply be that he has expressed his doubts openly and now in the press.

Edwards may have been treating the Lord and Christian faith like a superstitious rabbit’s foot all along. Let’s lead wisely as we shape the faith of those whom we serve.