As it happened today, Megan is gone, so the boys and us went down and met up with Taylor, a Whitworth teammate. We got there early to look around and Bruce and I grabbed a table by the main stage. As luck would have it, they interview Madeline Manning (one of my heroes) and Mac Wilkens and also Roger Kingdom. Very cool. I snapped a pic on my phone. We sit there some more and then Bruce says, "There's your girl." I look and Madeline Manning is standing 20 feet from us.
Now, let me back up... to 1980. I was fortunate enough to come to the Trials in 1980 with my aunt and sister and cousin. We had a blast, it was so fun for this farm kid/runner to witness all the awesome runners. At that time, we happened upon one Madeline Manning, sporting an awesome afro... I had watched her race and knew she was a wicked fast 800 meter runner, so I walked over for an autograph. She was so kind back then and talked to me, I don't remember much, but she signed my paper. When I looked down at it afterward, it said "Madeline Manning, Running for Jesus." I have a very clear memory of thinking, "Wow, she loves Jesus and she is telling everyone." At that point in my life, I knew all about Jesus and God and all that, but I hadn't really made any decision to follow Him. That, as I look back, was one of the many ways God pursued me.
Today I had the opportunity to tell her that. I briefly said that I had met her in 1980 and she'd signed that autograph and shortly after I'd decided to follow Jesus. At that point, she hugged me. It was a really cool moment in my life. Honestly, I have thought about her quite a bit. It was just one of those things. I do love how God works. I know that I'll see other cool things during the Trials, but I feel like this is the one that God had for me. Thanks. Great day.
