Thursday night, I watched a portion of Part I of Oprah’s interview with Lance Armstrong. I’ll admit I watched as a curious observer. As I listened to him, a thought popped in my head, and I shared the following on my Facebook page:
Let’s see how the world treats #LanceArmstrong. Is his cheating & lying different from Tiger's cheating & lying?
I mentioned Tiger only because he’s also the standard of excellence in his sport. Yes, they happen to be different races, but their status in sports, media, and the world was my focus. Tonight, I watched the remainder of Part I as more of a licensed counselor. I threw out words like narcissist, arrogant, in denial, personality disorder. I wondered about his childhood and the behaviors he’d witnessed growing up. What messages did he receive from the people he trusted, the people he loved, and the people who said they loved him? Unfortunately, we all know they can be three different groups of people.
I’m still in the process of watching Part II but now as someone different. Facebook status update:
Let’s see how the world treats #LanceArmstrong. Is his cheating & lying different from Tiger's cheating & lying or from when I’ve done wrong in my past?
Kind of different, right? Lance Armstrong is a hurting man who seems so disconnected from his true self and not just due to his present circumstances. He's probably been deeply wounded for years--soul wounds. Then fast forward to today. He’s been stripped of everything that he used to define himself. He’s lost all sources of income. He does not have a relationship with his biological father which I read he hasn’t had since he was 2 years old. Do any of these statements fit you or anyone you know? I know someone for each of them. Friends, I watched Part II as someone who’s also flawed.
To use Oprah’s phrase, what I know to be true is that God’s forgiveness is available to all of us. I also know that there is a blessing in the journey. Also, I believe that God brings us to moments in our lives that force us—I mean FORCE us—to face our current state, take inventory and make a decision on how to move forward.
Lance Armstrong said so far he’s learned a lesson that he thought he’d never learn; he’s “getting comfortable with not knowing…” That was true for me as well two years ago, but now I know it’s called increasing your faith! :-)
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