Running in His Pleasure

In 1924, Eric Liddell arrived at the Paris Olympics as Britain's most celebrated sprinter — the clear favorite for gold in the 100 meters. But when the schedule was announced months earlier, he saw that the heats fell on a Sunday. Despite pressure from the British Olympic Committee and a personal appeal from the Prince of Wales, Liddell refused to run. His identity wasn't built on being the fastest man in the Empire. He was, before anything else, a follower of Jesus Christ.

He switched to the 400 meters — not his specialty — and began training. On the day of the race, a teammate slipped him a note quoting 1 Samuel 2:30: He that honours me, I will honour. Liddell ran. He crossed the finish line in a world-record 47.6 seconds, arms wide, face turned toward the sky.

After the Games, he walked away from the spotlight to serve as a missionary in China, where he died in a Japanese internment camp in 1945.

The 1981 film Chariots of Fire gave him this line: "God made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure." Whether or not he said those exact words, they capture how he lived — from the inside out.