Did you hear about the endurance swimmer who swam 110 miles from Cuba to the Florida Keys? Amazing, right? Even more amazing? She’s 64!
Diane Nyad, 64, flanked by her support team. 53 hours in the water, 110 miles. Cuba to the Florida Keys. Photo credit: Andy Newman, Florida Keys news bureau, via Associated Press.
After repeated attempts over the years, starting when she was 28, she made it through the glaring sun, jelly fish attacks, and shark threats.
Gives Dori the fish’s encouragement to “Keep swimming” new meaning. Keep swimming. Keep swimming….
I heard Ms. Nyad on the radio this morning saying that jelly fish were the major obstacle that held her back on earlier attempts. She had to learn how to endure their stings.
Been there done that. Doing that now, in fact.
I’ve got “jelly fish” in my life, too, people who seem real pleasant and nice, like pretty jellies, but stung me bad. I’m learning to make it through.
One of the ways Ms. Nyad adapted was covering herself with a protective suit.
What’s my protective covering? Jesus.
Chip Ingram said, when you are hurt, run to Jesus.
Ms. Nyad also covered herself with sting-stopping protective gel. What gel protects us from others venom? Forgiveness.
Romans 12 says to slather on copious amounts :
“Repay no one evil for evil…To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Romans 12:17, 20
Lyzette Alvarez wrote in the New York Times:
Ms. Nyad’s success was built on her failures … After each attempt, she improvised, learning what to adjust, whom to consult and which new protective protocol to consider.
And she had to endure years of “grueling training”.
Same with us. Our Trainer puts us in deep water sometimes, messy situations, facing repeated challenges to forgive and go on, or quit and become bitter. And we can always learn from our failures “where to adjust, whom to consult and which new protective protocol to consider”.
Don’t quit. Like Ms. Nyad, keep on swimming. Keep on forgiving.
Chip Ingram says forgiveness = letting go, letting loose.
Let loose. Let God do the avenging.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” Romans 12:19
And follow Ms. Nyad’s advice:
… we should never, ever give up.
But how? By help from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. To keep swimming ahead, we need to keep trusting them with our hurts and pains. Like Ms. Nyad learned and told reporters:
…it looks like a solitary sport, but it takes a team.
How ’bout you? Are you a lone swimmer? Click the pic below to learn how to get on God’s team. He’ll keep you safe from the jellyfishes, so you can keep on swimming. =]
image credit: Hiroko Masuike, New York Times. http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/science/topics/jellyfish/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier
Gloriadelia 