“This is the end of me.”

That was the only thought that raced through the mind of Middle Tennessee State University jumper Sarah Nambawa when, on Dec. 31, 2009, she tore her posterior cruciate ligament while training for an upcoming meet.
 

I was blessed with an incredible childhood. My parents loved my siblings Amy and Bryan and me, and they devoted time to us and provided us with everything we needed. We grew up either playing in the creek behind our house in Santa Rosa, Calif., or walking across the street to the nearby state park’s swimming lagoon. I can still picture us carrying our giant inflatable animal rafts on our heads as we headed out for a swim.

There was a powerful calm in the air as Barton College Head Coach Ron Lievense prepared for the start of the 2007-08 men’s basketball season.

Alone in the Bulldogs’ locker room in rural Wilson, N.C., Lievense moved quietly from locker to locker, praying. He prayed not for a return of the international fame that accompanied Barton’s national championship victory a season ago, but for each of his players, that they would look to the Lord for guidance and give Him the glory in all things.

So, let's talk about the man in the sweater vest. What are we to make of this model of straight-laced propriety? He patrols the hallowed sidelines of the Horseshoe with the air of a great military commander, mowing down foes like Patton and his tanks. But five-star generals never go to war in V-necks and an AT&T headset. And what of the slightly tinted spectacles, neatly trimmed hair and pressed slacks? It says more "professor" than "football coach."

Next time you are outside, take a moment to reflect on the wind. Consider how the contrasting currents of air can either wrench homes from the ground or gently spin the hairs on your arm. Consider that in one location there may be a powerful tornado and in another a gentle breeze. Both are distinct, but not separate. They are streams of air—winds that have been stirred up in different ways. The result of each is determined by the many factors that contribute to their development. And in many respects, our human condition is no different.

When Keisha and Kara Cornelius were growing up in the dusty West Texas town of Denver City, all Kara wanted was to be with the sister who was four years her senior.

For many years, Keisha didn’t understand the depth of Kara’s desire. She’d go out to ride her bicycle with her friends, and Kara — who still hadn’t learned how to ride — would run as fast as her feet could propel her in a futile bid to catch up.

One by one, the children came.

They came from ramshackle villages and tarp-covered homes, their gaunt frames running barefoot through unkempt fields of grass to a skinny dirt road on the outskirts of town. Temporarily leaving behind their hardscrabble reality of hunger, disease and death, they lined both sides of the path to marvel at a new sight.

It was 54 years ago this month. A young, small-college basketball coach in Oklahoma realized his dream of providing major sports stars the opportunity to influence their fans to follow the only true Hero we can ever know—Jesus Christ. It marked the official beginning of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

That coach, Don McClanen, was overjoyed.

In 2005 Francie Ekwerekwu was a three-sport star at Arlington High School in Texas. She was a homegrown talent with a passion for track and some All-District hardware that displayed her volleyball and basketball skills as well. It took much prayerful consideration, but the 5'11" honor student decided to accept a volleyball scholarship to the University of Oklahoma—the equivalent of a Montague turning Capulet.

Why? According to Ekwerekwu, the reason was simple.

Her elementary school classmates used to mock her for her skinny “chicken legs” when she ran. But that all changed when she joined the track team in ninth grade.
 
Allyson Felix is still listed at only 5-foot-6 and 125 pounds, but she isn’t teased by those who watch her run anymore. Not since she became the fastest woman in the world.

Sheltered from the stark contrast separating the world’s “haves” and “have-nots,” FCA Colombia Director James Oilar was living the good life as a sports club manager in Chicago.

But when a friend asked Oilar a simple question, it took him on a journey that eventually landed him in Bogotá, Colombia, to help lead FCA’s first international Huddle.

The question? “James, what has to happen in your life so you don’t consider it a failure?”

Champ Bailey didn’t see it coming. Nobody did — except maybe Ken Watson. “Where is Benjamin?” Ken asked his wife as the two-inch Bailey sprinted across their television screen and down the length of INVESCO Field. It was the third quarter of the 2005 AFC Divisional Playoff game between the New England Patriots and the Denver Broncos; Bailey had just picked off New England quarterback Tom Brady’s pass in the end zone — a throw meant for Troy Brown — and he was now sprinting the 100 yards toward the Pats’ end zone. “I know he’s going to be there!”