Did you watch any of the summer Olympics this year? I loved observing the athletes, each of them filled with hope and determination to be the best in the world or at least to be the best they can be. Some of them came to the Olympics with a story that is full of pain and heartache, of families and coaches who sacrificed enormous amounts of resources and of past injury or losses in their health that almost prevented them from participating. In every case they held a vision for an even better story of achievement.

I loved observing the athletes, each of them filled with hope and determination to be the best in the world or at least to be the best they can be. Some of them came to the Olympics with a story that is full of pain and heartache, of families and coaches who sacrificed enormous amounts of resources and of past injury or losses in their health that almost prevented them from participating. In every case they held a vision for an even better story of achievement.

The team that we are a part of in “changing the story” is the global church.

What I found remarkable as I heard the stories of these athletes is that many of them are affected by the same issues World Renew is determined to overcome with communities around the world. Refugees, like Mardini Yusra, even formed their own Refugee Olympic Team. Mardini was the young woman who nearly drowned while escaping the Syrian civil war. As her boat, filled with refugees, began to fill with water, four people – including Mardini – swam and pushed the boat for three hours to reach land. While she did not win an Olympic medal in her swimming events, her incredible perseverance to save herself and everyone in the boat deserved a medal of honor.

Another athlete, Lopez Lomong from South Sudan, who participated in the 5000m running event, was six when he was abducted and taken to prison. Townspeople helped him escape and make his way to Kenya. Here he lived in a refugee camp for ten years before he eventually moved to the USA to be reunited with his mother, who he thought was dead. This was his fourth Olympics!

How about the inspiring story of Simone Biles, whose early years in Columbus, Ohio were fraught with poverty? Today, she has five medals, including four that are gold!

As much as we celebrate these human achievements and stories of courage on a world stage such as the Olympics, I am reminded of the tremendous faith and perseverance of each of our staff, partners and community leaders. There may not be any medals for all their contributions that changed the stories of people around the world; from impending death during disasters to recovering life, from poverty to meaningful work, and from oppression to freedom. These changes were made despite ongoing conflicts and insecurity in countries like South Sudan and Syria. Despite the disaster and poverty, we go forward.

The team that we are a part of in “changing the story” is the global church with Christ as our captain. Consider this very interesting study that was done recently by Dr. Michael Wood Daly of the University of Toronto. It shows the huge impact of church presence in local communities. The study shows that ten congregations in Toronto, Ontario Canada contributed $45 million of economic value to the city based on their combined budget of only $10 million. This suggests that the dollar value of having a church in a community is about 4.5 times its annual budget. The difference that church presence makes in community is called the “halo effect.” This is the church’s contributions to social capital and infrastructure, its programs for individual impact, and all other activities which add value to the local and regional community. If such a study would be done with churches where you work and live, what do you think it would show in terms of added value?

Let us remember how God sees each of our efforts and faithful service as individuals and as teams of churches and Christian organizations. While we can learn lessons from those like Mardini Yusra, Lopez Lomong and Simone Biles who never gave up; it is important that our faith is not in our own human power but in the divine power that God gives us. For it is by His grace alone that we live and have our being. It is by fixing our eyes on Him that we find unending JOY to endure every cross, any shame and whatever opposition comes our way.

I hope you will be encouraged today as you continue to change stories with this reflection from Hebrews 12:1-3:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.