It's complete surrender

You probably know the name Eric Liddell, especially if you have seen and remember the movie “Chariots of Fire.” This 1981 film told the story of a Scottish Olympian who, in the 1924 Paris Olympics, refused to run his main race because the qualifying round was being run on Sunday. Eric Liddell was the son of Scottish missionary parents and had been born in China when they served there. Eric was strong in his faith, and as the film detailed, he competed in a race that he was not fully prepared for. Yet the Lord honored his commitment, and Eric Liddell not only won the 400-meter race, winning Gold for Scotland, he set a world record in that event.

The most famous line from the film was Eric telling his sister Jenny, “God…made me fast. And when I run, I feel His pleasure.” What a beautiful line that can be applied in many ways in our own lives.

For most of us, that’s all the story of Eric Liddell that we know. But there is more. In fact, the line that was uttered in the movie about God making Eric fast was in context about him eventually going back to China as a missionary when he finished running. And he did just that.

Author Randy Alcorn wrote about this part of Eric’s life recently. While in China, the country became occupied by the Japanese, and Eric and many others were rounded up and placed in a squalid prison camp. Many stories have emerged in later years of Eric Liddell organizing and refereeing sports for the many kids in the camp. At some point, Eric developed a brain tumor. And it was in that filthy prison camp hospital that Eric Liddell died.

Some would call this a great waste. Those children, and many others in the camp, didn’t feel that way. One survivor said of life in those conditions, “…without the faithful and cheerful support of Eric Liddell, many people would never have been able to manage.” That survivor went on to say,

[blockquote author=”” link=”” target=”_blank”]…None of us will ever forget this man who was totally committed to putting God first, a man whose humble life combined muscular Christianity with radiant godliness.[/blockquote]

Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth also wrote of Eric’s life and its seemingly tragic end. Yet even then, there was a sense of victory.

[blockquote author=”Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth” link=”” target=”_blank”]On February 21, 1945, Eric lay in a hospital bed, struggling to breathe, drifting in and out of consciousness. Suddenly his body erupted into a violent convulsion. Shocked, the nurse tending to his care scooped him up into her arms to calm his trembling body. Then, in those fleeting seconds before he slipped into a coma, she heard him speak these final words in a barely audible voice, no doubt reflecting on the span of his life’s choices: ‘Annie,’ he said, ‘it’s complete surrender.’[/blockquote]

Complete surrender.

What did the Apostle Paul say about gain and loss?

[blockquote author=”Philippians 3:8 NLT” link=”” target=”_blank”]Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ…[/blockquote]

You may be in a very real struggle today. You may be dealing with what seems like a loss by today’s standards. Yet if we are living in complete surrender to the Lord Jesus and His will for our lives, we can recognize that every victory here on earth is worthless compared to what the Lord has for us if we remain faithful to Him, day in and day out, no matter the circumstances.

It is complete surrender to Christ and His cause that brings ultimate joy and victory.