#eric liddel

[blackswaneuroparedux]

But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

- Eric Liddel sermon at the Church of Scotland, Chariots of Fire 1981 (taken from Isaiah 40:31)

**Ben Cross and Ian Charleson by Lord Snowdon for Chariots of Fire, 1981.

[crownofcompassion]

New Post has been published on Crown of Compassion

New Post has been published on https://www.crownofcompassion.org/2021/06/03/embrace-the-story-god-has-given-you/

Embrace the story God has given you

“Embrace the story God has given you.  Even the parts where you grabbed the pen from his hand and tried to write your own.  Even the parts where someone else burst in uninvited and created chaos.  The scenes we’d rather skip become the redemptive highlights of God’s glory.”- Sharon Jaynes

In Chapter 12 (“The Perfect Ending to an Imperfect Story”), the final chapter of When You Don’t Like Your Story, Sharon Jaynes opens with memories of her son’s wedding day.  However, Sharon soon reveals that, during his junior year of college, Steven found life too hard to keep living.

A day after he was rushed to the hospital, Steven called his mother.  That call commenced the opening to the worst chapter of Sharon’s life.  Above all, Sharon stresses, she filtered every single page of this book through the tears, trauma, and triumph of that experience.  Hence, the author exhorts:

“God has the power to forgive the unforgivable, to mend the unrepairable, to redeem the unredeemable, and to get you through the worst chapters imaginable.  And not just get you through them, but make you better for it.”

Certainly, Sharon notes, everyone wants a new beginning.  But, she asks, what about a new ending?  Do you believe it’s possible to write a new ending to your story?  Add two more dots to that period at the end – to form an ellipsis?

Consequently, Sharon advises, don’t get stuck in a chapter when God simply invites you to turn the page.  Think Eric Liddel in Chariots of Fire.

Finally, Sharon wants to leave you with this thought.  That it’s not how you start.  Rather, it’s how you finish.  Above all, it’s important how you finish each chapter of the story God’s writing.  and blending it into His.  Also, the author adds:

“Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.”

Today’s question: What Bible verses help you embrace the story God has given you?  Please share.

Tomorrow’s blog: the annotated bibliography of When You Don’t Like Your Story

[scotianostra]

Eric Liddell being carried around Edinburgh University after the 1924 Paris Olympics. Good luck to all our athletes in the Olympics and I gope they take some inspiration from Eric Liddel . Scottish athlete and missionary, Eric Henry Liddell (1902 -1945) being carried round the streets after his Olympic victory. Eric Liddell, known as the 'Flying Scotsman' went to the Paris Olympics in 1924 as the favourite to win the 100 metres race but refused to run because he felt that running on a Sunday conflicted with his Christian beliefs. He won a bronze medal in the 200 metres event instead and then ran the 400 metre race despite having little experience at the distance. He not only won the gold medal but broke the world record by completing the race in 47.6 seconds, an achievement which is celebrated in the 1981 film 'Chariots of Fire'. Liddell gained two degrees, one in science and the other in divinity, before leaving Britain to work as a Scottish Congregational Church missionary in China as his parents had before him.He died on 21 February 1945, five months before liberation. He was greatly mourned not only at the Weihsien Internment Camp but also in Scotland. Langdon Gilkey was later to write, "The entire camp, especially its youth, was stunned for days, so great was the vacuum that Eric's death had left." According to a fellow missionary, Liddell's last words were, "It's complete surrender", in reference to how he had given his life to his God.