Christ Kona?

Photo: Linda Child
Photo: Linda Child
Year of Training, Year
of Learning
Alicia Trott kept up detailed reports
on her training and spiritual discoveries
on her blog, which was read by
many on Blogspot and Facebook.
Visit www.adventistreview.org/
aliciatrottsblog for links to several
of her posts.
RECOVERY: Jamie Trott, Alicia Trott’s
husband, warms her up after the race,
helping her recuperate.
FAMILY FANS: Jamie and Tucker Trott
show their support for Alicia by donning
matching shirts.
Application
Alicia, who isn’t currently training for
any triathlons, is gearing up for the next
big challenge. She and Jamie will be welcoming
their second child this month.
She doesn’t know if she will attempt
another Ironman anytime soon, but the
lessons she learned this go-around will
stick with her regardless. “I’ve
matured,” Trott says. “I’ve accepted who
I am. I’ve always been an Adventist; I
was raised and born one. But in making
my own hard decisions during this
experience and after, my spiritual connection
with God has grown. I’ve
become thirstier for learning and getting
to know Him better.
“I learned that a person can’t follow
people. You have to listen to God. It’s
hard to remember that all the time. People
can be wonderful; they can be great
influences; but in the end a person has
to look to God.”
Several months after Alicia made her
decision about Kona she learned she
had also qualified for the Age Group
National Championship. If she performed
well at the Age Group National
Championship there was a chance she
could represent Team USA at the 2014
International Triathlon Union World
Championships. Alicia felt honored and
blessed once again to have qualified for
such races, but every one of them took
place on Sabbath. “This time it wasn’t as
hard for me to turn down the opportunity
to further my triathlon racing experience,”
she says. “This time I felt
assured that protecting the Sabbath is
worth everything.”
What does Alicia think about other Adventists
who may choose differently? “I
don’t judge others for the decisions they
make on Sabbath, because people are
impressed so many different ways. But I
was personally impressed not to. And having
made that decision, and seeing what
has happened after—how my choice
affected people—I’m just so thankful!”
Alicia continues: “Some can justify
[certain activities] they do on the Sabbath.
My husband will tell you that I
can’t race on the Sabbath and not compete
to win. . . . [At Kona] I would not
have been thinking about the Sabbath. I
would have been thinking, Lord, please
bless me, please keep me safe, please be with
my family. But I’ve got to pass the next person;
what’s my time? how are my shoes? how
am I feeling? . . . the whole way through.
I’m sure some people can really get
immersed, and some can be OK. But I
couldn’t. There’s no way I could.”
And more than personal concerns,
Alicia shares that she thinks about other
young adults, and what she will tell her
children—how she will share her faith.
“I find that my experience may be
important for people my age who are
starting to think a little more seriously
about sports. It’s such a big thing, and
we put it above so many other things so
easily. I just, oh, so desperately want
them to see the true meaning of life,
what we’re here for. And sport is just
nothing! None of that stuff will we take
to heaven. My investments in heaven are
my family and my friends and connections.
. . . I didn’t have a lot of this point
of view before I started this journey.
“Jamie and I need to show consistency
with our children. I hope to
impart to them that no matter what
their success is, they must keep God
number one. And then I’ll just explain
to [them] all the joy and rewards we’ve
gotten since that decision, how God has
blessed us since then, and how that
means so much more to me than having
gone to Kona.”
It is clear that Alicia firmly believes
that it’s possible to make a good decision
and not only survive, but begin to
experience blessings in life as a reward
for faithfulness. “This is why my experience
makes sense. Why was I doing
this? If this changes even one person’s
life or thought or one decision, then it’s
all worth it for me!” n
Kimberly Luste Maran is the
young adult editor of
Adventist Review.
22 (438) | www.AdventistReview.org | May 16, 2013