“Our success on the track was only a very small part of our lives, but
we hoped it had taught us a disciple that was transferable to other spheres.” – Roger Bannister
In 1952, Roger Bannister set the
goal to be the first man to run a mile under four minutes and intensified his
training. The record for the mile run remained at 4:01.4 seconds for nine years.
“For years, the four-minute mile was considered
not merely unreachable but, according to physiologists of the time, dangerous
to the health of any athlete who attempted to reach it.” (Bruce Lowitt,
“Bannister Stuns World with 4-Minute Mile” St.
Petersburg Times, December 17, 1999) On May 6, 1954, Roger Bannister ran the
mile in 3:59.4, setting a new world record and breaking the proclaimed
“impossible” barrier. In an interview, Bannister said, “There was a mystique, a
belief that it couldn’t be done, but I think it was more of a psychological
barrier than a physical barrier.” (David M. Ewalt and Lacey Rose, “The Greatest
Individual Athletic Achievements,” Forbes,
January 29, 2008)
Once Roger Bannister removed this
psychological barrier, the door was opened for others to achieve this feat. On
June 21, 1954, just forty six days after Bannister had set this record, John
Landy broke Bannister’s record in Turku ,
Finland
Many people have been conditioned
with thoughts of what can’t be done. Studies have shown that within the first
eighteen years of our lives, the average person is told “no” more than 148,000
times. (Shad Helmstetter, What to Say
When You Talk to Your Self (New York: Pocket Books, 1986), 20) We are
constantly being told by parents, friends, teachers, television, and co-workers
what we cannot do.
To achieve the impossible, we
must strive to find solutions instead of excuses. Instead of saying, “I can’t
do it,” we should ask, “How can I do it?” Instead of saying “I can’t afford it,”
or “It’s impossible,” begin asking the questions, “How can I afford it?” and
“How is it possible?” This small change in our approach to life will produce
great outcomes. Elbert Hubbard wrote, “The world is moving so fast these days
that the man who says it can’t be done is generally interrupted by someone
doing it.”
Philo T. Farnsworth, the inventor
of television, the baby incubator, the electron microscope, radar technology,
gastroscope technology, astronomical telescope technology, and the fusion reaction
tubes, had a simple motto for his laboratory, “The difficult we do right away;
the impossible takes slightly longer.”
“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:13,
NKJV
“All things are possible to him who believes.”
Mark 9:23, NKJV
Share the Gift of
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“A book is a gift you can open again and
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-Garrison Keillor
