Imagine running one hundred meters in under eleven seconds. Now imagine doing that while being completely blind.
This is David Brown’s story. He is the fastest blind sprinter on the planet. After losing his sight at the age of thirteen, he competed in sports at the Missouri School for the Blind, eventually focusing his energy on track and reaching the Paralympics.
He won gold in the 100-meter race in the Rio de Janeiro Paralympics in 2016. He also won 100-meter titles at the 2015 and 2017 world championships.
A key to his success is his running partner, Jerome Avery. The two are literally tethered together as they sprint down the track. Avery serves as his eyes on the track, sprinting next to him in training and competitions from the starting blocks to the finish line.
Avery is an elite sprinter himself. He competed in the US Olympic trials in 2000 and 2004 but didn’t qualify, then he was invited to assist the US Paralympic team in Athens. He has now worked as a guide runner at the last four Paralympics.
Brown said, “It’s really hard to put into words how much you have to trust somebody when you can’t see something. It’s an individual sport, but you’ve got to be able to depend on somebody else to help.”
Running our race in the power of the Spirit
When I read about this remarkable partnership, I thought immediately about our Partner as we “run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). Jesus promised his disciples that when he left them to return to heaven, he would send the “Spirit of truth” who would “guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13).
On the day of Pentecost, this Spirit “filled” and controlled them,…
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