Go For Gold

I am now the organizer of the “gathering of the year”. A gathering that’s taking place on Oct 1. A gathering of long time friends who lost touched but got re-connected again mostly via Facebook within the last couple of months. Many of us have not meet for more than 10 years.

Was reading the sport.olympics (what else?? :p) in the Straits Times Friday, August 15 2008 page B17.

The headlines in bold, red & caps.

REDEMPTION

Yang finally exorcises the ghosts of Games past

“In 2000, he was second.

Four years ago in Athens, he fell off the horizontal bar and plummeted from first to seventh, …

In Athens, he was a disconsolate soul ………

When he wanted to retire, his coach Huang Yubin refused to let him.

‘I thought I was in very good shape back then and, if I couldn’t win gold then, I thought I could never get a gold,’ Yang said.”

Assuming he trained for 4 years before the 2000 Olympic, it took Yang Wei 12 years to get his Olympic gold medal.

There were times in the past I felt just like Yang Wei, ….”I am now at the peak of my youth, if I don’t get my “gold” now, I will never get it.”

There were periods of great disappointment, blunders (worse that falling off the horizontal bar during the Olympic gymnastic event), of unbelievable self-doubt as well as condemnation.

There was a stretch-out period when I felt I could no longer hear God, no longer discern, no long trust in the One who died to set me free. That was the worst. I have never known darkness as dark, heat as scorching.

I was in the fiery furnace.

These couple of weeks as I communicate with “lost and found” friends, sending out invites, seeing the “gathering of the year” taking shape slowing but surely – my heart’s burst with a sense of pride (pride in God and the people of God), joy, shalom, love, assurance and wholeness.

Everyone invited (those who will be invited along the way) has gone through the fiery furnace one time or another, in varying degree. We came out - “the fire had no effect on the bodies of these men nor was the hair of their head singed, nor were their trousers damaged, nor had the smell of fire even come upon them.” Daniel 3:27.

As far as I could tell, everyone is doing well. Cant help but feel so proud of God as well as the people of God.

I like what Susheel said just a couple of days ago. God has always known what He's doing so, when tested, we can actually relax. Thank God that we don't journey alone in life. :-)

To tell you the truth – there was a time I wasn’t sure if God knew what He doing. Yea, on hindsight it might seem almost blasphemous that I dare entertained such a thought. I was simply too blinded in the trial at the time.

I am so glad the Holy Spirit is my Coach. HE never threw in the towel and quit on me. Of course He had to tell me (often) that I can’t but through the Christ in me, can. Go for gold. … that He who began a good work in me will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Phi 1:6

that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus!

Go for gold.

See you at the finishing line.