What to do when you drop the baton
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2004 Athens Olympics, Womens 400 Meter Relay
 It was the final round, and Marion Jones had just completed the second leg. Teammate Lauryn Williams bolted from her starting position, thrust her arm back, and anticipated the thump of the baton being pressed into her hand.
She never felt it.
Said Jones, "I just couldn't get the baton to Lauryn . . . I kept yelling, 'Wait, stop, hold up' but after running 100 meters I was out of breath and I don't know if she could hear me."
By the time Williams understood the situation, it was too late. She had crossed out of the exchange zone. As long as they were in that zone, they could have even dropped the baton and picked it up to finish the race. But once they passed out of that zone without the baton having been passed, they were disqualified according to Olympic rules.
2008 Beijing Olympics, Womens 400 Meter Relay
 With the disgraced Marion Jones having been stripped of her medals and sentenced to prison, Torri Edwards took the field in the baton relay. She ran her best, but upon realized that the pass to Lauryn Williams had failed, she screamed and held her hands to her face in disbelief.
 Lauryn, shocked at the 2004 nightmare being repeated, gathered her wits, charged back to retrieve the baton, and ran full speed toward the finish line. The baton had dropped outside her lane, resulting in disqualification, but she was determined to finish the race with honor.
Lauryn said, "The whole Games haven't gone quite as planned for Team USA in track and field. I told my team that we're running through the line no matter what."
Running Through the Line No Matter What
This generation has dropped the baton of godly faithfulness. It may be too late for first place finish, but at least we can pick up the baton and finish with honor.
British preacher F. W. Robertson stated it best:
Life, like war, is a series of mistakes, and he is not the best Christian nor the best general who makes the fewest false steps. Poor mediocrity may secure that; but he is the best who wins the most splendid victories by the retrieval of mistakes. Forget mistakes: organize victory out of mistakes.
Lauryn, we know this is devastating, but you lifted our spirits with your determination to press on to the end. Thank you.
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