Thoughts: This is such a wonderful verse. It is written in the context of handling anxiety and stress- and it says to handle these things with prayer (Philippians 4:6-8).
Jesse Owens was one of the great heroes of the modern Olympics. Hitler had said only the aryan (whites) would be the superior race. Jesse was the grandson of a slave and the son of a sharecropper. He overcame tremendous odds just to get to the Olympics. He was on Ohio State's track team but not on a scholarship. He worked as an elevator operator to pay his way through school. He set three world records and tied another in less than an hour in college.He had won against the odds all his life, but to win when everyone was pulling against him in the midst of Hitler's arena was a miracle. In the long jump he fouled out his first two jumps. His German competitor, Luz Long, gave him a tip to help him qualify. Jesse had a strong faith in God and commended that faith often to others. Jesse won 4 gold medals (100m, 200m, 4 x100 m relay, and long jump). Owens life was a roller coaster of successes and failures and bankruptcy. In the end, people could not forget what he had done and he was able to get the ear of presidents and congressmen. He spent most of his non-business life working to help young people to choose sports as an alternative to getting into trouble (like for the Illinois Youth Commission).
Part of our task is to not let our past, our environment, our ups and downs to keep us from doing what we believe God has gifted us and called us to do in life.
Prayer: Lord, help me to have strength and grace.
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