'MY ONLY REASON for racing'

NOTHING CAN PREVENT you from expressing God and using the talents He gives to all His children. Not even a diagnosis of ill health. I'm grateful to have learned this through an active life of teaching swimming, dance, gymnastics, and other sports.

As a young child, I'd often been told that I was a "china doll," delicate and a bit frail. I didn't like thinking of myself this way, and had learned in Christian Science Sunday School that I didn't have to accept any limitations on my physical capabilities. I took comfort in Christ Jesus' words, "I can of mine own self do nothing" (John 5:30), which helped me see the need to rely on God. I also often thought about another passage in the Bible that highlighted this idea: "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Phil. 4:13).

I began competitive swimming with the goal of expressing God to the very best of my ability. Even though I was smaller than most of the other swimmers, I knew that as God's reflection, I naturally expressed strength and endurance. When I was a teenager, I was asked to join a highly-ranked swim team. I knew this step would require a lot of practice time and hard work. But I was willing to do it in order to compete at a more advanced level.

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