As an American track and field athlete, Lori (Lolo) Jones is consistently making headlines for her skill and speed on the track. She won three NCAA titles and garnered 11 All-American honors while at Louisiana State University from 2001 to 2005. She also won indoor national titles in 2007, 2008 and 2009 in the 60m hurdles, with gold medals at the World Indoor Championship in 2008 and 2010. Lately though, this ultra-fast athlete is making headlines because of her choice to take it slow when it comes to sex.
Jones is also an outspoken Christian who is open about her faith. When she recently found out she qualified for the Olympics this July, she Tweeted, “Wow! Nothing is impossible with God! Honored to represent The United States at the 2012 London Olympics.” She is also open about her sex life, or lack thereof. Jones says she has put the brakes on having sex, telling the world via HBO’s Real Sports that at 29-years-old, she is still a virgin.
In an interview on the show, Jones said she struggles to maintain her virginity. “It’s just something, a gift I want to give my husband,” Jones said. “But please understand that this journey has been hard. There are virgins out there and I’m going to let them know, it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. Harder than training for the Olympics, harder than graduating from college has been staying a virgin before marriage.”
While she says it’s the hardest thing she has ever done, it’s also obviously one of the most important choices she will ever make. Jones is learning about sacrifice, holding on to her faith and serving the Lord. Still, it won’t always be easy. She recently Tweeted, “Yes I’m a virgin. #1 reason why I’m single bc guys deuce out when I won’t put out.” She has also admitted to receiving plenty of backlash about her decision. In a recent interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, she said, “Everybody’s mad at a girl who doesn’t put out!”
Still, Jones is serving as a role model for young Christians everywhere, even when people question her. “I’ve had guys tell me… ‘Hey, you know, if you have sex it will help you run faster,'” Jones said during the Real Sports interview. “No. Not even [for] Olympic gold. I do want this gold medal, but not that bad. Not yet.”
Her choice to save herself for marriage will hopefully give hope to other young people who want to wait to have sex as well. She says she has been tempted and been given plenty of opportunities, but she has chosen to hold out for God’s best for her. She has a focus like the one cited in Corinthians 9:24-27. “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
God wants more than anything for you to experience a loving relationship that eventually includes intimacy, but in His perfect timing! 1 Timothy 4:12 reminds us to not “let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” While the “waiting” may be difficult, we can rest assured, knowing that God will sustain us. When we choose to make the decision to wait on God’s perfect timing, we like Jones, will ultimately earn a gold medal in love!