Serving
for God at the
Sydney Olympic Games
The following testimonies are
taken from The Sower, Special Games Edition,
published by the Bible Society in Australia.
Serving
for God at the The following testimonies are
taken from The Sower, Special Games Edition,
published by the Bible Society in Australia.
SYDNEY, Australia — At the peak of his sporting career, which saw him captaining the Australian volleyball team at the recent Sydney Olympic Games, David Beard says that his main strength comes from the Bible.
“I see life in perspective – I know that sport is not the ‘be-all and end-all’,” said Mr Beard. “Jesus says that the first commandment is to ‘love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul and all your mind’, and that is the Bible verse I choose to live by.
“I hope the way I play reflects who I am and what Christ is changing me into – a good sportsman, someone who plays fair and abides by the rules of the game.”
But six years ago, despite an increasingly successful sporting record and winning a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), Mr Beard felt that his life was empty.
“I was not happy. I was striving to achieve goals in sport to get fame and money, but every time I would get a little step along the way there was emptiness that followed,” he said. “Through some Christian friends, a chaplain at the AIS and by reading the Bible I discovered that what Jesus did was true…that his dying on the cross and rising was for me, so that I could have a relationship with God.”
Mr Beard, whose team took eighth place in the Olympic Games, shares his testimony with sports fans in the BSA’s sports New Testament, Towards the Goal. (WR 356/14 - 12.00)
SYDNEY, Australia — With two gold medals under his belt, Stephen Wilson is one of the fastest Paralympic sprinters in the world. He is also a committed Christian who has always put his relationship with God first despite the pressures of intense international competition.
“For me, the question is never ‘Where does God fit into sport?’ but ‘Where does sport fit into God?’” said Mr Wilson. “The Paralympics are a huge thing and very exciting, but only for a short time. So what if you win gold but lose your soul? A relationship with God is much more important than a gold medal.”
Mr Wilson lost a leg through a serious accident when he was 13 years old, but his faith in God was not shaken. “I never begrudged my accident, I just accepted it,” explained Mr Wilson. “I remember when I was in hospital an elderly Christian man told me: ‘There is a reason why God has allowed this to happen. You might not understand it now, but in the future it will be clear.’ I have always held onto that.”
Through his success in the sports world, Mr Wilson has seen God’s purpose for his life – the opportunity to provide a Christian witness for sport enthusiasts as well as people with disabilities. (WR 356/15 - 12.00)
SYDNEY, Australia — As captain of the Australian women’s Olympic Volleyball team, one of Sil Ruddle’s favourite Scripture verses comes from 1 Timothy 4:8: “Physical exercise has some value, but spiritual exercise is valuable in every way, because it promises life both for the present and for the future.” (GNB)
“I hold this verse dear because it is so easy to get caught up in training and volleyball and trying to succeed in your sport,” said Ms Ruddle. “The verse is saying that there are two more important things in life – having a relationship with Jesus and trying to live a godly life which is pleasing to him.”
For Ms Ruddle, the Bible is the key to her relationship with God. When she first began thinking seriously about her faith at the age of 16, it was through reading the Bible that she finally decided to commit her life to Jesus.
“I started checking out the Bible and the claims it made about Jesus and his death on the cross and what that means to us,” she said. “I came to the conclusion that it was true and this was something that was really worth committing my life to.”
Ms Ruddle’s team was defeated by China in the final round of preliminaries at the Sydney Olympic Games. (WR 356/16 - 12.00)