Between my talks at the Baptist College of Ministry on Monday, student after student came and shook my hand. Many wanted me to autograph their textbook. Others sought me out to share with me how much my books had helped them.
During our lectures, my talks were more than talks. It was a love affair. I spoke from heart to heart. And I saw in each a reflection of my feeling for them. I told them we were all to be heroes in some way.
Later, as I flew home, I felt warm and satisfied. I reflected on the similarities between them and the runners from Sunday's race, men and women who in the end found in themselves a determination and courage they never knew they possessed.
Here were thousands of people running for more than 90 minutes at a speed that in the past would have winded them in a minute. When I finished the race, I was in a state of happy agony. Likewise, when I think back to the students I met on Monday, I knew why God had put on me on his green earth.