Pathways Press.com

Written by Max Lucado, a contemporary pastor and author.  This is an excerpt from his book “3:16 The Numbers of Hope”

Team Hoyt consists of a father-son squad: Dick and Rick. They race. They race a lot. Sixty-four marathons. Two hundred and six triathlons. Six triathlons at Ironman distance. Two hundred and four 10K runs. Since 1975, they’ve crossed nearly a thousand finish lines. They’ve even crossed the USA. It took them forty-five days to run and pedal 3,735 miles, but they did it. Team Hoyt loves races. But only half of Team Hoyt can run. Dick, the dad, can. But Rick’s legs don’t work, nor does his speech. At his birth in 1962, the umbilical cord wrapped around his neck, starving oxygen from his brain, stealing coordination from his body. Doctors gave no hope for his development. Dick and his wife, Judy, disagreed with the prognosis. Rick couldn’t bathe, dress, or feed himself, but he could think. They knew he was bright. So they enrolled him in public school. He graduated. He entered college and graduated again. But Rick wanted to run. At age fifteen, he asked his dad if they could enter a five-mile benefit race. Dick was not a runner, but he was a father, so he loaded his son in a three-wheeled wheelchair, and off they went. They haven’t stopped since. Young Rick Hoyt relies on his dad to do it all: lift him, push him, pedal him, and tow him. Other than a willing heart, he makes no contribution to the effort. Rick depends entirely on the strength of his dad.God wants you to do the same.

The phrase “believes in Him” doesn’t digest well in our day of self-sufficient spiritual food. “Believe in yourself” is the common menu selection of our day. Try harder. Work longer. Dig deeper. Self-reliance is our goal. And tolerance is our virtue. “In Him” smacks of exclusion. Don’t all paths lead to Heaven? Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and humanism? Salvation comes in many forms, right? Christ walks upriver on this topic. Salvation is found, not in self or in them, but in Him. We bring to the spiritual race what Rick Hoyt brings to the physical one. Our spiritual legs have no strength. Our morality has no muscle. Our good deeds cannot carry us across the finish line, but Christ can. Paul assures salvation to the most unlikely folks: not to the worker, but to the trust-er; not to the able-bodied, but to the unable; not to the affluent saint, but to the bankrupt and unemployable — the child who will trust with Rick Hoyt reliance. We bring what Rick brings. And God does what Dick does. He takes start-to-finish-line responsibility for His children… When Dick and Rick Hoyt cross finish lines, both receive finisher medals. Post-race listings include both names. The dad does the work, but the son shares in the victory. Why? Because he believes. And because he believes, both celebrate the finish. May you and your Father do the same.

Prayer:

Written by Rachel Wojo, a contemporary author and speaker.

Dear God, What an incredible God you are!
When I look at the beauty of your creation,
I’m in awe of your mighty and majestic ways.
When I see the work of your hand,
I’m overwhelmed by your love for me.
Lord, I believe that you saved my soul;
Help me trust that you have made me whole.
Lord, I believe that you hear my prayers;
Help me trust that your answer is best.
Lord, I trust that you created the mountains;
Help me trust that you can move them.
Please forgive my failures and
Increase my ability to give you everything.
Thank you, Jesus.  Amen.