“Running For My Life” is the inspiring story of Lopez Lomong, a lost boy in Africa who ultimately finds himself running in the Olympics.
This book takes you on a journey, beginning with 6-year-old Lopez Lomong being yanked from his mother’s arms while attending church.
The book is packed with descriptive and sometimes grueling scenes, while unfolding the life of Lomong. When taken from the church, he described being picked up and thrown into the back of a truck. He then bounced off another boy and landed on a hot, dirty, metal truck bed. The truck was full of children from his church.
Despite the circumstances, Lopez stayed positive. While poor and hungry at the refugee camp, he stated:
“Life may have been hard, but we were happy. Yes, boys died and food was difficult to come by, but at least no one was shooting at us.”
Lopez maintained a grateful heart. When discussing food he said:
“We only ate one meal a day, but for me, coming into the camp at the age of six, I accepted this as normal. I never thought life was unfair because I had to eat garbage. Instead, I looked at the scraps of food from the dump as a blessing.”
Eventually, Lopez moved to America with a loving, encouraging family. He went on to compete in the Olympics, earn a college degree, as well as start his own foundation to improve the lives of people in Sudan, Africa.
In closing, Lopez stated:
“I lived through disaster. I lived through hardship and death. Yet God never left me.”
The story of Lopez Lomong is an inspiration to us all.
His life shows us that anything is possible, no matter how difficult your journey may be.
