“Don’t look back. Lengthen
your stride and press toward the goal." ~ Philippians 3:13-14
The 1972 Munich Olympics are
perhaps best remembered by the murder of 11 Israeli athletes and coaches by Palestinian
terrorists. Mark Spitz won a record-setting
seven gold swimming medals. Yet the unsung
hero of the Munich Games was another American swimmer - Steve Genter. Never heard of him? Read on.
Young Steve’s Olympic dream began at age ten. Rigorously practicing every single day for seven
years, he qualified first in the 200-meter freestyle qualifying event and
became the odds-on favorite to win the gold medal in Munich.
Less than a week before Olympic competition was to begin,
Genter suffered a partly collapsed lung. Surgeons opened his chest, repaired his lung
and stitched him back together. Pain boiled
through his lung like boiling water; more intense than he could have ever
imagined.
Doctors warned Steve that his dream was over; the pain would
be too great to swim in the finals without medication; Olympics rules banned all
painkillers. Even Mark Spitz begged him
to withdraw (the event was the second most worrisome final of Spitz's seven).
Yet, Genter soldiered through the pain, nausea and
sleeplessness which dominated every thought. When his name was called, he stepped proudly
onto the starting block; his surgeon at poolside.
When the gun sounded, he flew from the platform, adrenaline pumping with every ounce of concentration. In a dead heat with Spitz, an awkward flip
turn at 100 meters tore his stitches loose!
Fifty meters later there was blood in the pool.
Despite losing 24 ounces of blood during final lap, Genter lead
with 25 meters to go. But he was spent. Spitz raced past him capturing gold by less
than 1/10 of a second. Genter won the
silver medal.
Two days later his team won the 4x200 meter relay and Genter
collected a gold medal. He added a
bronze later in the Games before returning home in Spitz’s shadow.
What happens to you when things go wrong? Are you ready to quit or compete through the
pain? Do you surrender to circumstances
or do you “Genter” through them?
When we strive for excellence and follow God's unique plan
for our lives, we always win. God's
emphasis is not on overcoming or outsmarting our competitors but on the
development of our own vision, passion, and perseverance. The race is not against other contenders but
against ourselves. Success is not
measured by the margin of victory over our rivals, but how we did compared to
how well we could have done.
Our emphasis, therefore, must be on performing to the
measure of our personal capabilities, on exercising discernment, discipline,
and dedication in achieving the goals we believe God has set for us in our
personal sphere of influence.
Lord, those who put their trust in You will
never be disappointed. Help me to keep
trusting in Your great love for me even in the darkest, most painful times when
I don’t understand Your plan. Amen
