THE BEAT OF A BIG HEART (part 2) WINSDAY WISDOM Session 17

A big heart can do great things.

One of my favorite movies encouraged me to do what God purposed for my life. It was not a movie about love or drums. It featured a horse, the greatest racehorse of all time, Secretariat.

Secretariat was a horse with a big heart, literally and competitively. His heart was more than twice the size of a normal horse which aided his strength, stamina, and speed. Athletically, heart size is referred to as the X Factor in desire to win. Secretariat was the first horse in twenty-five years to win the Triple Crown (Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont), all in speed record times.

Wearing blue and white colors, Secretariat took on the challengers in the Kentucky Derby. Coming around the first turn, he began passing horses in front of him as he moved from eighth position to right behind the favorite Sham.

As they came into the home stretch heading for the finish line, Secretariat sprinted past the leader and won by 2.5 lengths in a new record time which still stands today, 1:59.25. The champion thoroughbred ran every quarter of the race faster than the preceding one.

The second race of the Triple Crown at the Preakness was even more brilliant. Secretariat came out of the gate last, but immediately engaged in a full sprint, ignoring the safety warnings associated with the tight turns. His win in record time catapulted him into a cultural phenomenon.

Praised as a super-horse, Secretariat gained celebrity status among the fans, even featured on a Sports Illustrated cover.

The third race at Belmont was the most challenging, a graveyard for speed horses. This longer race favored the bigger and stronger Sham. The opponent’s strategy was to force Secretariat to start fast but falter due to lack of stamina.

Secretariat sprinted right out of the gate; he never stopped. The race was as legendary as it was dramatic. Secretariat and Sham took the lead, leaving the other horses far behind. The movie captured the race announcer’s voice calling Secretariat’s lead at six lengths, growing to eleven.

The broadcaster shouted Secretariat was moving like a “tremendous machine” leading by 17 lengths as he came around the turn. Onlookers were not watching a machine. This was the showcase manifestation of a big heart.

Strength. Stamina. Speed.

The spectators were on their feet, their voices thundered, the stadium began to shake. The movie captured the moment in SILENCE as the camera looked back from the finish line to the final turn awaiting the appearance of the horses.

The off-screen narration reflected on life in the context of athletic contests.

This is about life being ahead of you and you run at it! Because you never know how far you can run unless you run.

Time seemed frozen as everyone waited in anticipation for the climactic end of the race. Could Secretariat finish as strong and as swiftly as he began? How big is his heart?

The theatre speakers began to vibrate with the thunderous sounds of galloping legs pounding the turf as Secretariat appeared on the screen, coming around the final turn, headed for home and victory. The horse with the big heart appeared all alone…fluid and fast…majestic and mighty.

Everything on the screen changed into classic movie slow motion as a voiceover narrated words from the #1 Textbook.

The horse rejoices in his strength and charges into battle. He laughs at fear, afraid of nothing. He does not shy away from the sword…In frenzied excitement he eats up the ground. He cannot stand still when the trumpet sounds.                                                                          

My favorite part of the movie comes next as the music heightens and beautiful choir voices stir the soul.

O Happy Day! O Happy Day! When Jesus washed my sins away. O Happy Day!

As the song continued, the race announcer’s voice filled the background. “Secretariat sprints toward the finish line…20 lengths in front, having run the first mile and a quarter faster than his Derby time. His lead increases to 25 . . .28 lengths.”

He taught me how to walk, fight and pray, And live rejoicing–everyday. O Happy Day!

Secretariat crossed the finish line in record time: 2 minutes and 24 seconds.  Winning margin: 31 Lengths.

As the famous sportswriter, William Nack, penned, “As rhythmic as a rocking horse, Secretariat never missed a beat, a stunning portrait of grace and wonder. No fading. No faltering. No failure.”

This life is not about horses, but it is about heart. There is a race aspect to our lives. It is not a rat race or horse race. It is not even a competitive race with others to climb the ladder or be king of the mountain.

THE ETERENAL GOAL IS TO ACCOMPLISH OUR GOD-CENTERED PURPOSE TO LOVE IN A LIFE VERSUS DEATH RACE AGAINST OUR SELF-CENTEREDNESS.

We learn to win that colossal race in life’s smaller things. The airport. A football game. Trash carryout. Handyman trials. Listening to directions. Playing drums to the beat of our heart.

The X Factor reveals itself in times of testing. Our heart grows to love more in moments of spiritual disorientation, soap opera drama, or sideline to spotlight tension. We discover limitless love for a spouse amidst changes from honeymoon bliss to vacation stress, for better or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, until death and then beyond.

Use your God-given big heart to love wholeheartedly. Shortcuts never help. Mediocre or half-hearted efforts will fail. Insincere actions will always lose. Good actions from an insincere heart miss the mark. Love First. Love Most. Feel the Beat.

Chariots of Fire is a movie which covers the real-life story of Olympic Gold Medal winner and China missionary, Eric Liddell. He was a young man who remembered the most important thing in life: Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength and then love your brothers as yourself.

After Liddell won the Olympic 400-meter race in an all-out sprint, a reporter asked how he accomplished his record-setting feat against more highly favored competitors. Liddell’s humble answer carries a lesson for our races of love. “I run the first 200 meters as hard as I can. Then, with God’s help, I run the last half even harder.”

God gave you a big heart, bigger than you have yet to realize. A big heart can do great things. God lives inside of us to lead us to others He intends to love through us.

SINCE GOD’S LOVE IS INFINITE, WE CAN ALWAYS STRETCH OUR LOVE FOR GOD AND FOR OTHERS TO WIDER, LONGER, HIGHER, DEEPER LEVELS.

Our race of love in this life is about getting our practice to match our position in the next life with God’s family. Spiritually, we are simultaneously (or near simultaneously) in both places at the same time. Jesus is with us on earth, and we are with Jesus in heaven.

God’s Word teaches that by God’s grace alone, we are somehow positionally seated with Christ at heaven’s highest place of honor; while practically, we are finishing this earthly life side by side with others.

In God’s eyes, we are already there with Him; yet we are encouraged by Him to run faster, stretch wider, love longer, and rejoice more in this earthly race. However it works, we are living here and living there at the same time. How is that possible?

If we could see our earthly lives the way God does, we would be looking back, watching ourselves running side-by-side in every relationship and in every circumstance toward our heavenly place. We would be cheering ourselves on in the journey to run harder and faster than ever before.

Liddell also stated, “God made me fast. When I run, I feel His pleasure.” God made you to love. When you love big, you will feel God’s pleasure. Remember the motivation: Desire and Delight. The joy of the lover is in the joy of the one loved.

Make no mistake about this. The struggle to love is not caused by the other person’s selfishness, stubbornness, or stupidity. The greatest and only barrier to loving any other person is our self-centeredness.

This is a wonderful time to showcase a big heart in your relationships. Give more. Be more faithful. Never give up. Finish Strong. Love first. Love most. Then, with God’s help, love even more. Feel God’s pleasure.

OUR RACE IS DOWN TO TWO COMPETITORS. ONE IS A LIFE OF GOD-CENTERED LOVE FOR OTHERS. THE ONLY OPPOSITION THREATENING THE CHAMPION’S CROWN IS OUR SELF-CENTEREDNESS.

May we all learn to race against the Sham of our self-centeredness. Break away. Run as hard as you can and then, with God’s help, run even harder. Put some ever-widening distance between love for others and your selfish futility.

Small victories of love are extremely important. The goal is to win bigger. Leave the Sham of Self-centeredness behind in the dust. Let your heart race faster and farther than ever before. Let the beat of your heart be seen, heard, and shared by others.

Oh, Happy Day! Oh, Happy Day! When Jesus washed my sins away. Oh, Happy Day!

Cheer yourself to hear the beat of your big heart. Listen to the roar of the angelic crowd urging you toward the earthly finish line.

Finish Strong! No fading. No faltering. No failure.

Love First and Love Most. Love Faster! Love Farther! No limits! No exceptions!

How do you defeat your self-centeredness?

Expand your circle of love. (next session)