RUNNING FOR HIS GLORY

Champions' TriBUne Archive

By: Taylor Whitfield

Champions' TriBUne is a special feature through Baylor Athletics that gives you the student-athlete's perspective and the chance for them to share their own story. Taylor Whitfield, a sophomore from Highlands Ranch, Colo., came back from injuries last year to place in the cross country team's top three at the Big 12 Championships and NCAA regional. Majoring in Child and Family Studies, Taylor's Valor High School cross country team finished eighth in the nation in 2019. Baylor Cross Country opens the season at Thursday's Tornado Watch Invitational at Old Settlers Park in Round Rock, Texas:

How did I become a runner? Well let's just say that it wasn't my original plan to join cross country.

Running was my last choice, my last option, literally my last resort. My family is super competitive, and I really wanted to compete on a team. I tried everything from soccer to volleyball to softball. I got so desperate that I decided to give archery a try. Yes, archery. (No offense to anyone out there who is an archer because it is impressive). But nothing seemed to fit. I was in middle school when my parents mentioned running as an option, and I finally relented; however, I joined the track team instead of cross country, because running 80 miles a day was not my idea of fun. I started out as a sprinter and made an occasional appearance as a long jumper as well. Finally, the distance coach at my future high school saw me attempting to sprint at practice one day and made the obvious observation that I was NOT a sprinter and most definitely not a long jumper. He thought that I could be a distance runner, but I didn't agree in the slightest. That is the LAST sport that I wanted to do. I was just fine with doing track, but cross country? No way. But, my parents didn't listen to my concerns about my ability to survive all those miles. And so, I became a cross country runner.

At this point in the story, you may be thinking 'OK, so this is when she finally finds her sport.' Unfortunately, I was THE worst runner my coach had that summer. I ran at the very back of a very spread-out pack. And I walked a lot. But, my coach refused to give up hope, and slowly I began to figure it out. At the end of my sophomore year, I realized that I might have the opportunity to compete at the collegiate level. It became my dream to compete in college, and I was beyond thrilled when college coaches began to recruit me. Fast forward, and here I am at Baylor University running cross country and distance track going into my sophomore season. Thank you, Jesus, because it is a huge blessing for me and for my family.

My passion for my sport came slowly. I have had a lot of struggles that have made it hard to love running. The pain can be difficult for me to push through, and the mental battles can be overwhelming at times. While I might not have planned to be a runner, I believe that God led me to this sport, because it strengthens my relationship with Him.

I think that God uses sports to teach us valuable lessons. Like sports, life is hard. It's not fair, it knocks you down, it injures you physically and mentally, it can be overwhelmingly scary. But in the world of sports, athletes choose to keep going, no matter the pain, no matter the outcome, no matter the fears. We've all seen or heard about that one athlete who takes a major hit in their athletic career, becomes an underdog that no one believes in and then has an amazing comeback story. Similarly, in life we may fall, have a "season ending injury," or go through something that no one could come back from. But, God doesn't want us to sink into our misery and quit. When life knocks us down, we can trust that He will work everything out for our good (Romans 8:28). God's heart is one of redemption and mercy. And He wants us to overcome the difficult things in our life with His help, because He is the author of comeback stories. Running has taught me to rely on His strength when mine fails. Because He is the one who holds us when life gets tough.

Running has also taught me that where I place my identity is very important. Our identity cannot be found in anything that we DO. It comes from who God says we are. When you fail at your sport or during an exam, or at your job, YOU are not a failure. Failure is an event; it is not a person. We must be able to separate those in our minds, because failing is the only way we can achieve greatness. And if we can't learn to fail well, (meaning we don't beat ourselves up but rather take what we learned from the mistake and apply it next time) then we will never know how good we could be.

I am not a hot-shot runner. I was awful when I first started. I've worked my tail off, but I also know that I couldn't have done this by myself. The Lord has blessed me with an ability to run, and it led me to be able to compete at Baylor. There is no way this tiny little "ex-sprinter" could have made it to this level without the grace of God.

The biggest thing I have learned through this sport is to NEVER LIMIT YOURSELF. I have some big goals this season and in my running career. Some might call me crazy; others might say there is no way you can possibly do that; some may say I am too confident. And maybe right now I am crazy, and maybe right now looking at my journey from the outside, it seems impossible. But, it is unfair to limit myself, and it is certainly unfair to limit God. Who are we to say that something is impossible when, through God, all things are possible? (Philippians 4:13). Now, I am not saying that all my goals and dreams are going to magically happen because I believe that with God all things are possible. They might not come true if it's not part of God's plan, and so I'll find a different area in my life to serve Him. But I am saying that I am going to give everything that I have to glorify my Lord and Savior through running, and I am not going to put limits on what I can do THROUGH Christ this season and later in my career. And neither should you! God has given us all a platform and a gift and, if we completely surrender our lives and our hearts to Him, there is no telling where He might take us. We can plan our path, but it is the Lord that directs our steps (Proverbs 16:9). You have no idea how God will bless you in this life to honor and glorify Him.

God chooses to bless us with gifts and talents which are enjoyable for us to do. God wants us to enjoy glorifying Him. He gives us a way to honor Him by doing what we love, and He delights in us when we use our athletic abilities for Him. We bring Him pleasure. As long as we fully surrender to Him, we can chase after our goals and dreams without any reservations or fears, because there is no telling what God can do through you!

Previous Champions' TriBUne Features:
Volleyball – Lauren Harrison (August 18, 2022)
Acrobatics & Tumbling – Katie Shiffer (June 23, 2022)
Men's Tennis – Sven Lah (May 5, 2022)
Baseball - Nolan Rodriguez (Apr. 28, 2022)
Equestrian - Caroline Fuller (Apr. 14, 2022)
Men's Tennis - Matias Soto (Mar. 17, 2022)
Soccer - Ally Henderson-Ashkinos (Mar. 3, 2022)
Volleyball - Callie Williams (Nov. 4, 2021)
Soccer - Jennifer Wandt (Oct. 14, 2021)
Softball - Lou Gilbert (Aug. 5, 2021)
Women's Track & Field - Aaliyah Miller (May 27, 2021)
Equestrian - Madaline Callaway (May 20, 2021)
Acrobatics & Tumbling - DayAndrea Thompson (May 13, 2021)
Men's Tennis - Constantin Frantzen (May 6, 2021)
Softball - Sidney Holman-Mansell (April 8, 2021)
Women's Golf - Gurleen Kaur (March 25, 2021)
Baseball - Andy Thomas (March 4, 2021)
Men's Tennis - Charlie Broom (Feb. 11, 2021)
Volleyball - Marieke van der Mark (Dec. 3, 2020)
Football - Raleigh Texada (Nov. 12, 2020)
Men's Cross Country - Ryan Hodge (Oct. 29, 2020)
Women's Cross Country - Sarah Antrich (Oct. 15, 2020)
Volleyball - Hannah Sedwick (Oct. 1, 2020)
Soccer - Maddie Algya (Sept. 10, 2020)
Men's Basketball - Freddie Gillespie (March 26, 2020)
Women's Track & Field - Tuesdi Tidwell (March 20, 2020)
Women's Basketball - Moon Ursin (March 5, 2020)
Men's Track & Field - Cole Hardan (Feb. 27, 2020)
Volleyball - Shelly Stafford (Jan. 30, 2020)
Men's Golf - Mike McGraw (Jan. 3, 2020)
Volleyball - Yossiana Pressley (Dec. 5, 2019)
Baseball - Nick Loftin (Nov. 21, 2019)
Men's Cross Country - Ryan Day (Nov. 1, 2019)
Women's Cross Country - Lindsay Walton (Oct. 15, 2019)
Men's Basketball - Obim Okeke (Oct. 1, 2019)
Volleyball - Gia Milana (Sept. 17, 2019)
Soccer - Raegan Padgett (Sept. 5, 2019)
Football - Sam Tecklenburg (Aug. 29, 2019)
Men's Golf - Cooper Dossey (July 11, 2019)
Baseball - Richard Cunningham (June 27, 2019)
Men's Tennis - Jimmy Bendeck (June 14, 2019)
Baseball - Shea Langeliers (May 30, 2019)
Women's Track & Field - Kiana Horton (May 22, 2019)
Men's Golf - Garrett May (May 9, 2019)
Women's Golf - Maria Vesga (May 2, 2019)
Acrobatics & Tumbling - Camryn Bryant (April 25, 2019)
Equestrian - Shannon Hogue (April 16, 2019)
Women's Tennis - Angelina Shakhraichuk (April 9, 2019)
Women's Basketball - Lauren Cox (March 22, 2019)
Men's Track & Field - Wil London (March 7, 2019)
Men's Basketball - Jake Lindsey (March 4, 2019)
Softball - Nicky Dawson (Feb. 21, 2019)
Baseball - Josh Bissonette (Feb. 14, 2019)
Men's Tennis - Will Little (Jan. 31, 2019)
Men's Basketball - King McClure (Jan. 17, 2019)
Women's Basketball - Chloe Jackson (Jan. 3, 2019)
Football - Blake Blackmar (Dec. 13, 2018)
Volleyball - Braya Hunt (Nov. 29, 2018)
Soccer - Jackie Crowther (Nov. 16, 2018)
Women's Cross Country - Alison Andrews-Paul (Nov. 8, 2018)
Football - Ira Lewis (Nov. 6, 2018)

RUNNING FOR HIS GLORY

Players Mentioned

Shea Langeliers

Will Little

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RUNNING FOR HIS GLORY

Players Mentioned

Shea Langeliers

Will Little

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