I was struggling... I spent hours in the bath praying
Direction Magazine|April 2020
Elim member Joel Fearon is running the race set before him – but it certainly has its ups and downs, he tells Direction
I was struggling... I spent hours in the bath praying

A month before Joel Fearon became Britain’s third fastest 100m sprinter, he was ready to give up.

The Olympic runner and bobsledder was injured and struggling with the weeks of separation from his young family.

“I didn’t think I could do it anymore and spent hours in the bath praying,” he tells Direction.

“But the thing that came to me more than once was, ‘If you start something, finish it. Don’t stop halfway through.’ Just weeks later, I was in the newspapers as the third fastest 100m sprinter behind Linford Christie and James Dasaolu.

“It was as wild as it gets and I didn’t see it coming,” he says after achieving his personal best time of 9.96 seconds in 2016.

His whole career has been like this, he says – a story of sporting highs, emotional lows and provision from God beyond his wildest dreams.

It started in 2011 when 20-year-old Joel and his wife Gemima moved to Loughborough. “I used to be in finance, but I got quite good at athletics on the side and Jemima encouraged me to pursue it.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM DIRECTION MAGAZINEView all
‘Imagine Everyone On This Planet Is Your Equal'
Direction Magazine

‘Imagine Everyone On This Planet Is Your Equal'

David Beasley, Executive Director of the Nobel Peace Prize-winning UN World Food Programme, reveals the words his work is founded on

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021
God Sets The Example Of Adoption...
Direction Magazine

God Sets The Example Of Adoption...

Many people have ruled themselves out for fostering or adoption when the system would rule them in, explains Krish Kandiah

time-read
6 mins  |
April 2021
The Work Of Missionaries In Lockdown
Direction Magazine

The Work Of Missionaries In Lockdown

When lockdown brought Ian and Katie Moore’s mission work in Macedonia to a halt, they used the time to seek a refined vision for reaching their local area. They told Chris Rolfe their story

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2021
How Nurse Helped Acid Attack Model Find Faith
Direction Magazine

How Nurse Helped Acid Attack Model Find Faith

Katie Piper explains how a life-changing incident changed her life in more ways than she expected as she recovered in hospital

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021
Big Challenges Issued At Online Conference
Direction Magazine

Big Challenges Issued At Online Conference

Elim’s first online theological conference examines how our understanding of the ‘End Times’ shapes our view of mission

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2021
Lockdown in London deepened my faith
Direction Magazine

Lockdown in London deepened my faith

Living alone in London may not have been what he dreamed about, but Chelsea’s Christian Pulisic says it has driven him closer to God

time-read
1 min  |
April 2021
The Really Good News about new initiative!
Direction Magazine

The Really Good News about new initiative!

Elim’s new online mission programme could be the biggest evangelistic outreach we’ve ever done, says national evangelist Mark Greenwood. As we gear up for Easter, he gives the lowdown on the campaign

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2021
It's the gospel of liberation, not renovation
Direction Magazine

It's the gospel of liberation, not renovation

When Jesus was 30 he went to the prison of sin, and knocked on the door. Satan opened that little window and said, “What do you want?” Jesus told him: “I have come to set the captives free!” A sermon by the late Reinhard Bonnke

time-read
7 mins  |
April 2021
The mystery of Skull Hill
Direction Magazine

The mystery of Skull Hill

Skull Hill is a rocky hill rising just outside the north wall of Jerusa-lem, not far from the Damascus Gate. It was given that name because of the striking resemblance to a human skull appearing on the weather-beaten formation of its southern face.

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2021
A decade of mission
Direction Magazine

A decade of mission

With an Easter evangelism programme, the Elim Leaders Summit and a renewed call to mission, General Superintendent Chris Cartwright outlines Elim’s plans for 2021 and beyond

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2021