Made to Run

In the 1924 Paris Olympics, Scottish sprinter Eric Liddell was the favorite for the 100 meters. But when he learned the heats fell on a Sunday, he withdrew. His conviction ran deeper than his speed. He would not compromise what he believed to chase what he wanted.

His sister worried that running had become an idol. In the 1981 film Chariots of Fire, Liddell's response captures the heart of his faith: "God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure."

He entered the 400 meters instead — an event he hadn't trained for — and won gold.

What strikes me is the order Liddell kept. He didn't say, "I'm a runner who happens to believe in God." He said, in effect, "I belong to God, and running is one way He delights in me." His gift didn't define him. It flowed from who he already was.

We live in a world that constantly asks, "What do you do?" — as if your talent, your career, your role is the truest thing about you. But Scripture says the truest thing about you was settled before you ever performed. "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you" (Jeremiah 1:5). You are not what you do. You are whose you are.

When you get that order right — identity before activity, belonging before performing — you stop running for approval. You run with the pleasure of the One who made you.