A Note From Tom: August 10th, 2012
Hey everyone!
Hope your having an awesome day! You might be planning on catching some Olympics today. I read that 40% of all Americans watch some Olympics at work while they're supposed to be working, so…
if you're a member of the "Sporty Forty" here's what's ahead for your day…
If fencing is your thing, men's team sabre semifinals are coming up…
Then there's men's quadruple skulking finals in rowing…
If you're into cycling, check out the women's BMX semifinals…(That's not cycling, really…)
Wrestling?…mens 55k and 74k finals…(Let's see…what's 2.2 lbs X 74?)
Then it's team free routine in synchronized swimming…women's team...obviously
By the way, you know the feeling when you watch stuff like synchronized swimming and you say to yourself, "Well, dang! I could do THAT!"
Hold your noseplug a second!
Here's the truth about Synchronized swimmers. They practice more than any other sport! Paddling, twirling, puffing, kickin' n' grinnin', six days a week, eight to ten hours a day! Talk about prune-y fingers!
Synchronized swimmers regularly are under water for a whole minute at a time and are holding their breath three out of the four minutes of their routine! They can swim 75 yards under water! And hold their breath for three minutes!! Try that at home! In fact, let's try it right now!
I'll keep the time. Ready? One…two…three…GO! uuuuuhhhhh…. …..pff ….. ppff… …pssss….. …ppffffsss…..HHHHUUUUUU!!! Seventeen seconds!
Whoa. Harder than it looks.
When they do the famous "stack lift" move, the "pushers" lift the" flyer" completely out of the water without touching the bottom (of the pool!). And a "throw" is where they send her flying through the air, all while just kicking their feet under water!
Dang! I don't think I really could do that!
Like being all opinionated about swimming synchronized, I found that sometimes it's easy to be all "brave and bold" when I'm talking about a situation that I'm never gonna actually find myself in. Sunday's the men's marathon…26.2 miles thru the streets of jolly ol' London. Our guy, Ryan Hall has a chance, but if he asked me, I'd tell him, "I think I would try to take the biggest lead early and run away from everyone. Skip the first two water stops. Get way ahead instead of getting caught at the end". Then I realized…I'm all bold and brave about my opinion in situations I'll never be in! I mean, I've run a few of those marathons. But those dudes will finish one hour and a half before I ever have! if I was in that race, they would have had a shower, heard the national anthems,and taken a nap before I crossed the finish line! Frankly, it's easy to have a big, bold opinion about a situation I'll never actually experience
Its easy to have an opinion about the dorkiness of synchronized swimming 'til I realize I couldn't do it for 30 seconds no matter how many nose clips I was wearing!
The other day I read an amazing and shocking declaration the Apostle Paul made in his letter to the Romans. It was a super "brave and bold" statement! I don't mean to be critical of the awesome apostle but he was talking about a situation he'd never find himself in!
He was taking about people who didn't know Jesus, and he said (listen to this!), "I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of them" (Romans 9.3)
Wow! That is bold! And brave! "I wish I could be cursed so they could go to heaven! I wish I could be separated from the love of Jesus if it would help them know Him!"
Only thing…brave and bold, but…That's a situation he was never gonna find himself in! That scenario would NEVER come true! "I wish I could be separated from Jesus and His love if it would help them!"
Ain't gonna happen!!
We could NEVER be cursed, even if we were willing to take it for someone! We've already been blessed with every spiritual blessing instead from before the foundation of the world (Eph 1.3)! It's a done deal!
Cut off from Christ?
What?!
Even if he was willing…
even if he wanted it…
even if he somehow wanted Jesus to leave him alone…
no matter how much he might want it…
Paul himself had written that "NOTHING can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!" (Rom 8.39)
We're His very own!
He's promised to be with us always!
He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Heb 13.5)
Wow!
Just knowing that…it kinda makes you feel bold and brave!