Eric Liddell was an Olympic runner from Britain who won a gold medal in the 1924 Paris Olympics.

He was a man who had a deep commitment to the Lord and had future plans of being a missionary. In the meantime, he knew God had given him a special gift to run, and he often said, “I feel God’s pleasure when I run.”

He spent years training for the Olympics. He passed each hurdle and qualified for the Olympics.

Finally, the day came for him to run in the games that were held in Paris. There was only one problem. One of his running events was held on Sunday.

Liddell refused to run on Sunday, believing it dishonored the Lord’s Sabbath. He held to his convictions and brought great persecution on himself. He made a decision that even if it meant losing his opportunity to compete, he would not run. God’s laws were greater than man’s applause.

Just when the circumstances seemed hopeless, another situation arose that allowed Liddell to run on a different day.

So often this is the case in the spiritual realm. God tests our hearts to see if we will remain faithful to Him at the cost of something important to us. Once He knows where our loyalty lies, He opens a new door that meets the desires of our hearts.

God takes pleasure in seeing His creation used for His glory.

Liddell understood why he was made to run; he used his gift of running to bring pleasure to his Creator.

Later, Eric Liddell went on to serve God on the mission field.

Does your life work bring pleasure to the Lord? Do you understand that God instilled certain gifts and talents in you so that He might find pleasure in His creation of you?

Take pleasure in the gifts God has given to you this day. And let His glory shine through you.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:10

by Os Hillman