May. 14, 2022

Derby Joy

Over the past week there has been a lot of news about Rich Strike, the Kentucky Derby winner who beat the longest odds and won the race. If you haven’t seen it, I encourage you to Google it and listen to the announcer. He wasn’t paying attention to Rich Strike; nobody was. He, and everyone else, was completely focused on the lead horses, neck and neck into the final stretch. And seemingly out of nowhere, Rich Strike storms through the pack and wins by ¾ of a length. It was beautiful, but it was so much more than that. It was an incredible message to the world.

The back story is that Rich Strike wasn’t even supposed to be in the race. Just days before, another horse had to drop out and Rich Strike was added as a fill-in to take the spot. Truly, he had nothing to lose, but everything to gain. The odds against him were 80-1 when bets closed.

How often have any of us felt that the odds were stacked against us like that? How often have any of us felt like we had no business competing in a race that others thought we had no business being in? I know I have often felt that way. Sometimes, it’s my own voice telling me that, and sometimes it’s the voice of others. But it shouldn’t matter. We should just run our race with joy and enthusiasm, and to the best of our ability.

Hebrews 12:1-2 says “And let us run with endurance the race the God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus on whom our faith depends from start to finish.”

Jesus is our jockey, steering us, guiding us, encouraging us, and sometimes holding us back until the exact moment we need to run with everything we’ve got. When we trust Him, His timing is perfect to make the most of the gifts he has given us.

That’s exactly what Rich Strike did. While the world was watching the favorites, he ran his race all the way to the finish line. He trusted his jockey, listened to his commands, and trusted in him when it was time to make his move. And he shocked the world with what he could do. We, too, need to run our race, listen when He gives us the command to make our move, and give everything we’ve got to fulfilling our dreams and bringing glory to God. Maybe you, too, can shock the world with what you can do when you run your race with endurance. Be brave. Be kind.