The Note in His Hand

In July 1924, Scottish sprinter Eric Liddell stood at the starting line of the 400-meter final at the Paris Olympics — an event that was never supposed to be his. Months earlier, Liddell had withdrawn from the 100 meters, his strongest event, when he learned the heats would be held on a Sunday. The press called him a fool. Critics said he was throwing away his country's best chance at gold.

But Liddell believed honoring God mattered more than honoring the expectations of others.

Before the final, a team masseur pressed a folded note into his hand. On it was written a phrase from 1 Samuel 2:30: "Those who honour Me I will honour." Liddell tucked the note into his palm, took his place in the outside lane — the worst draw — and ran.

He didn't just win. He shattered the Olympic record with a time of 47.6 seconds, leaving the field behind by five meters.

Faith rarely makes sense to the crowd. It asks us to release the sure thing and trust God with the uncertain thing. Liddell couldn't see the other runners from the outside lane. He couldn't know how the race would end. But he had already settled the deeper question: Would he trust the One who called him, even when obedience looked like loss?

The Almighty doesn't always explain His plan before the starting gun fires. But those who honor Him — even at great cost — discover that He has been running ahead of them all along.