The Finish Line You Don't Have to Reach Alone

On August 3, 1992, British sprinter Derek Redmond lined up for the 400-meter semi-final at the Barcelona Olympics. He had trained for years, survived five surgeries, and finally made it to the moment he had dreamed about since boyhood. Then, halfway around the curve, his hamstring snapped.

Redmond crumpled to the track. Medical staff rushed toward him with a stretcher, but he waved them off. Weeping, he pulled himself upright and began to hop toward the finish line. Sixty-five thousand spectators rose to their feet.

Then something remarkable happened. A large man in a T-shirt pushed past security and fought his way onto the track. It was Jim Redmond — Derek's father. He wrapped his arm around his son's waist and whispered, "We're going to finish this together." And they did. Step by agonizing step, father and son crossed that line while the stadium wept with them.

Hope is not the belief that the race will go as planned. Hope is the assurance that when your legs give out, you are not alone on the track. The writer of Hebrews understood this when he reminded us that we run surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith.

Whatever race has broken you down today, your Heavenly Father is already pushing past every barrier to reach you. You will not finish alone.