Lent #8: Seabiscuit and Spirituality

Have you seen the movie Seabiscuit? It's the story of an undersized, damaged racehorse...trained by a 'washed up' trainer and ridden by a young man who had been abandoned by his parents as a young boy during the Depression. I happened to stumble upon it last night on TV, and was reminded of a quote that I think is the most powerful of the entire move:

"You don't throw a whole life away just it's banged up a little." -Tom

Truthfully, there is not a single one of us who isn't "banged up a little"...it's the inevitable reality of life. We make mistakes...large and small...people hurt us...we're treated badly in the workplace...we confront illness and death and grief...and we are...all of us...banged up.

The beauty of Seabiscuit's story is a mirror to us all. Redemption comes to everyone who has the heart to receive it...sometimes in the most suprising ways! The Psalmist says,

"I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eye saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be."

God knows you...and your story...from the end to the beginning, and all of the parts in between. Whether you're banged up or not, your life is precious to him, and the power of God's mercy and love will one day redeem every wound. He can and will restore beauty from the ugliest of ashes.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Contemplative Politics

Image
I began writing this blog 2 1/2 years ago...what can only be described as several lifetimes ago, from the perspective of the events that have transpired in my life since May of 2010.   I won't take the time to recount those events, but suffice to say, I never imagined that I would use this space to contemplate politics, or the place that our political perspectives may take on the path of our individual spiritual journeys... To rightly share my story, I must go back in time to January of 2008, when I, like many Americans, first heard then-candidate Senator Barack Obama speak after his groundbreaking win in the Iowa caucus.  I remember the experience quite vividly, because I was mesmorized by the ideal he seemed to represent.  As I sat in a theater this afternoon watching the Dinesh D'Souza political documentary "2016", I was struck by the fact that much of our political consciousness is defined by what each of us projects upon the candidate of our choice. You mi
Read more

Strip down, start running...and never quit!

Image
I've made a commitment to participate in a 1/2 marathon on March 27th, 2011. To be precise, the event is the Rock 'n'Roll Dallas 1/2 Marathon, and we are raising money for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Foundation. You might have noticed that I've made a commitment to participate , rather than to run , and there is a reason for the distinction. I'm using a training system for first-time 1/2 marathoners, and the process requires that you run 1/2 and walk 1/2 of the race...interestingly, the most challenging part of following this system is that I don't feel like I'm doing enough . Do you ever feel that way? Like you're not doing enough? At work, at home...in school...with your friends, for your family? I think it's a common experience, and it can wear you down, if you let it. As I've mentioned before, running has become an enormously helpful metaphor for how I understand life. I said in another blog this morning that my new life philosophy i
Read more

If it's Saturday, then it's a "TO DO" List...

Image
Last night I sat down for my evening reading and journaling...I had missed Thursday night, and realized how much I missed the rhythm of the daily ritual. It felt good to collect my thoughts, read my daily Proverb(s), and plan my weekend. So when I awoke this morning, I was the proud owner of a 15-item "TO DO" list. A track, if you will, to keep the train of my life on course this weekend. Not just any "TO DO" list, mind you, my list contains exotic items like: do laundry, water the plants, pay the bills, load the dishwasher, take out the trash, and clean the bathrooms. Clearly, I am living the life of the rich and famous! In all seriousness, the presence of a list is both helpful and comforting...helpful because it gives me a tool to know where I need to focus my energy, and comforting because it removes the random nature of what a weekend can sometimes become when we have dozens of things to do, and no plan to do them. I have a direction in my efforts - I am lookin
Read more