But what struck me yesterday, even more than Armstrong's fall from his pedestal, was the glee with which it was witnessed. And the theme of these celebrations? "I knew he was too good to be true!"
How sad.
I'm struck by the tendency in our society to celebrate the mediocre and to take exception to the exceptional. By how quick we are to cheer when heroes fall, and to make heroes of the merely present.
It's been suggested that the real problem is simply that we're putting too much on these human beings. That our heroes are simply too fallible. I think it goes much deeper than that.
Jesus -- God incarnate -- was a perfect man. He taught compassion, and love, and grace. He healed the sick, fed the hungry, and encouraged His followers to do the same. He was a good man, by any standard. A great man to anyone actually paying attention. Greater than great.
We murdered Him.
And before that, the Pharisees and teachers of the law were relentless in their attempts to get him to slip up. To prove Him a fraud.
Why?
The truth is, excellence makes us uncomfortable. Perfection serves to throw into deep contrast our own failings and shortcomings. Man, we hate that. So we find heroes from among the masses. We lift them up. And then we start pulling at the chinks in the armor and wait for it to come apart.
Perfectly natural, I suppose, if you aren't in Christ. But we who are in Him have motivation to strive for more. Colossians 3:17 reminds us, "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." And further down, we see what that looks like:
Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving. (Col. 3:23-24)
Maybe our earthly heroes fall. But shouldn't we, who know our works are meant to glorify our Creator, strive not for the mediocrity which satisfies the rest of the world, but for the excellence to which we are called?
I find this whole thing sad. I read the story you linked to on FB, and it seemed to focus on how all the good Lance did doesn't negate the bad. But does the bad he did have to negate the good?
ReplyDeleteYes, it was wrong of him to lie. If he really did do enhancing drugs, then yes his titles should be stripped away. But that doesn't mean he didn't inspire all those people. Or that the things THEY accomplish now mean nothing because they were following someone who made mistakes.
Anyway, several years ago I read Lance Armstrong's book, It's Not About the Bike. (Which, btw, is ill-named, because it really was about the bike :P.) But the thing that got me really choked up at the end--it was obvious he's not a Christian, and obvious that there was a hole in him because of it. I don't know how to explain it, but it was like I could see the hole in him that he's trying to fill with the way things were worded.
Maybe this situation will force him to face his demons. But I'm not looking to kick the guy while he's down. I went through a cancer battle that was a cake-walk compared to what he went through. Regardless of what he's done wrong, he won that battle legitimately.
Good post, Randy. Shows your heart :).
Thanks, Kat.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I'm also saddened by this whole thing as relates to Armstrong. And I wonder the same thing: are we so empty of grace that the mistakes undo the good that was done?
If he's lying, I hope he owns up to it, and soon. On the other hand, I think we're too fallen as a society to be able to trust witness testimony as fully as the bicycling organization and ADA have done. In all, I'm withholding judgement and simply praying that, with this newly-widened hole in his life, he really begins an honest search for what's missing.