This story will INSPIRE you!
I’m a sucker for inspirational stories.
Maybe sucker is a bad word. I’ve grown to treasure stories of other people who rise above their demons, challenges, and overwhelming obstacles.
The stories remind me that I’m not alone—and that other people are facing struggles and challenges even bigger and messier than mine.
They also remind me that there’s always a choice to use your obstacles to grow and to turn life’s lemons into lemonade.
That’s why I want to share a story that caught me by surprise just last week.
Full disclosure—my wife, Kristi, and I are American Ninja Warrior nerds. We watch little TV (except, of course, football), but we record ANW so that we never miss an episode.
ANW is on NBC Monday evenings during the summer months. I don’t remember how or why we started watching, but we quickly became hooked. It’s positive, encouraging, and yes—inspirational.
If you’re not familiar, American Ninja Warrior is an obstacle course competition. It requires agility, stamina, and a great deal of upper body strength. Most obstacles are incredibly challenging. Many elite athletes fail.
Each ANW competitor gets one and only one chance to navigate the course. If you fail on any given obstacle, you fall into a pool of water below. Competitors who complete the course and have a fast enough time advance to future rounds of competition.
All of that brings us to my new inspiration—15-year-old Sean Loughlin of Boonsboro, Maryland.
Sean has a handful of disadvantages in the Ninja competition. For starters, he’s 5’1” and weighs 94 pounds. And, at the age of 15, he’s just barely old enough to compete.
But here’s the biggest challenge of all. Sean has mitochondrial disease.
Sean’s condition was diagnosed when he was very young. He can’t eat food by mouth because he can’t convert food into energy. Daily activity is challenging and tiring.
Sean makes batches of formula every day. The formula attaches to a feeding tube. The tube, in turn, is attached to a port on Sean’s stomach where it feeds into his intestinal tract.
Sean has to be attached to the feeding tube for 20 hours a day. At home, his food hangs from an IV pole. In public, he wears a medical backpack.
The only time Sean disconnects is for his Ninja training.
Here’s a link to the inspirational video of Sean’s race on ANW. The clip is 7 minutes and 51 seconds long. It’s VERY worth the watch.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bvnsVI6J41I
Spoiler alert. Against all odds, Sean (nicknamed Mitoman) COMPLETES the incredibly difficult course, including the final obstacle—a 14.5-foot climb of the Warped Wall.
Not a dry eye in the house.
Here’s what I love most about Sean’s story.
Mitocondrial disease is incredibly difficult to navigate—especially for a 15-year-old kid. Sean deals with seizures, fatigue, and the constant need to be attached to a feeding tube.
The disease is just not fair. And Sean could choose to sit at home, feel bad for himself, and feel jealous of all the kids who get to live “normal” lives.
But Sean chooses otherwise. He chooses to embrace the challenges, to grow through difficulty, and to be an inspiration to others.
I hope this video is as uplifting for you as it is for me.
I hope it affirms that you are not alone. It’s assuring to know that other people face demons, challenges, and overwhelming obstacles, too.
And I hope it helps you reflect on ways you can embrace those challenges and turn them into opportunities to grow and bless the people around you.
By the way—I’d love to hear what’s inspiring you these days. Just hit reply and drop me a note.
God bless you, my friend. Please trust that you can learn and grow through your current challenges—all so that you can be an encouragement to others.
You are the answer to someone else’s prayers. I truly believe that you can use seasons of challenge as an opportunity to grow and make a difference in the lives of the people around you.
With gratitude,
John Alan
