“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions. — Mark 12:29-34
Last week, we talked about the four essentials of the faith, one of which is putting God first. In light of that, I wanted to share with you a clipping from a news story I read this past week.
In this article, we read about Angelo Taylor, a US sprinter who won gold in the 400m hurdles.
Supremely talented, Taylor fell long and hard, first struggling with injuries, then finding himself with no sponsorship and a career on the brink after he pleaded guilty in 2006 to contributing to the delinquency of two underage girls. He was sentenced to three years probation, and basically was out of track, doing electrical work in Atlanta.
But he still knew he could run. So did Innocent Egbunike, a former Nigerian Olympian who was coaching in Atlanta. “I saw him and told him that he was wasting God-given talent,” Egbunike said. Taylor wanted to run, so he started showing up, and throwing up, during Egbunike’s workouts. He conditioned himself first to handle the training, then to compete. And finally to win again.
“He’s come full circle,” said Taylor’s mother, Subrena Glenn-Everett, after the race. “He put God first, and everything came into place.” By turning his life around, Taylor put himself first in Beijing, running a career-best time of 47.25 and leading silver medalist Kerron Clement and bronze medalist Bershawn Jackson to the first U.S. sweep of the event since 1960.
BIG IDEA FOR THE DAY: What does it mean for God to be number one today?
