He missed his heat on Sunday, but two weeks later, he won gold.
In 1924, Eric Liddell stood before the world and chose rest over a race. He refused to run the 100-meter heat because it fell on the Lord’s Day. The newspapers mocked him. His teammates questioned him. But Eric believed honoring God mattered more than winning. So he trained for another event, the 400 meters. Two weeks later, he ran with a clear heart and crossed the line first. He didn’t shout or argue. He ran straight and true. That quiet stand still speaks, especially when my own schedule fills faster than my faith and I start to run the race everyone expects instead of the one that matters.
In Mill City, we need that same clarity. After fires, floods, and long winters, we know endurance. But we also know distraction. Work piles up, screens glow late, and we drift toward busyness. I feel that same slow pull from prayer to productivity. Still, small, steady choices can show what we love most.
Love Begins with God
Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:30). That kind of love claims everything: our thoughts, habits, and evenings when we’d rather rest. The Bible calls this ordered love: putting God before everything else so everything else finds its place.
When God leads, noise quiets. Families breathe again. Churches grow patient. Neighbors notice grace, and I see it in my own home when peace returns after I stop crowding God to the edges. Love finds its footing in ordinary days.
One Small Turn Changes Everything
Most of us won’t face the world’s stage, but we stand before smaller tests every day. A quick prayer before dawn. A visit across the street. An apology that heals an old hurt. Each turn points the heart toward obedience and reminds me that faith rarely feels big when it’s real.
Here are two ways to start this week:
- Choose one act of love. Wake five minutes early to pray. Share a meal with a neighbor. Make one overdue call. Write the date.
- Protect Sabbath space. Guard an evening for prayer or rest. Silence the phone. Be fully present with your family.
I keep learning that small acts rarely make headlines, but those unseen choices make disciples.
Keep Your Eyes on Your First Love
Love fades when left alone. Review your week often. Ask, Where did I give my best attention? What needs to change? Start today. Pick one name and one act, and do it before the week’s end. Mark it down. Pray, “God, order my loves around You.” Then make this pledge: “I will show one neighbor love this week and write it down each day.”
Like Eric Liddell, let’s run our race steadily, not for medals, but for joy. May Mill City see it—at the mill, the bridge, the ball field, and the table.
