What Can a Cheating Norwegian Biathlete Teach Me About My Approach to God?

Have you ever done something that makes it tough to look others in the eye?

The world watched an example of that this week when Norwegian biathlete Sturla Holm Laegreid won a bronze medal in the men’s 20-kilometer individual race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, marking his first individual Olympic medal.

But instead of celebrating the achievement, Laegreid broke down in tears during a post-race interview, revealing that he had recently cheated on his girlfriend of six months. He described her as “the love of my life” and called his infidelity “the biggest mistake of my life,” explaining that he confessed to her just a week earlier and had been living through “the worst week” of his life ever since.

Laegreid said he chose to publicly admit his mistake in hopes that she might see how much she means to him. While he had previously won Olympic gold as part of Norway’s relay team in Beijing, he referred to his girlfriend as the real “gold medal” in his life. Sadly, what should have been a triumphant Olympic moment instead became a deeply personal and emotional reckoning.

The Pain of Distance

Whenever we feel ashamed of who we are or what we’ve done, this creates immediate distance with others. If we’ve wronged a friend, we find it tough to look them in the eyes, and if we’ve done something selfish, we find it hard to approach God.  

Many Christians struggle to approach God, often out of a sense of guilt. Maybe they’ve messed up one too many times and feel like God can’t love them. But more often, they struggle to approach God not out of guilt, but a sense of personal despair. They feel he is unreachable, inaccessible, and impersonal.   

Even as I write this, I’m not going to act like I haven’t struggled with these same emotions myself. God, where are you? Why don’t you seem to answer when I pray? Why do you feel so distant?

Of course, you or I are far from the first to wrestle with these very real emotions. In Ephesians 3, Paul addresses this very challenge. Keep in mind that as he writes, he does so from prison, and he’s writing to the church of Ephesus to a mixed congregation of Jews and Gentiles.

For centuries, Jews had been marked off as God’s covenant people through the law, circumcision, temple worship, food laws, and clear social boundaries. Gentiles were outsiders. Not morally worse necessarily, but religiously outside the promise.

In Ephesians 2, Paul has already noted that Christ tore down the dividing wall of hostility. Now in Ephesians 3, Paul explains how that was always part of God’s plan.

The word “mystery” in Ephesians 3:3 is central here, and this mystery is that Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. For Jewish believers, this redefined centuries of identity. For Gentile believers, it was a breathtaking lift of dignity. They weren’t barely tolerated converts. They were family.

This reality sets up Paul’s words in verses 12, where he says of Christ, “In him we have boldness and confident access through faith in him.”

Bold Versus Timid

As Francis Foulkes writes, “The word boldness (parrēsia) is basically ‘freedom of speech.’”^[1] We don’t have to act like the guilty child, poking her head around the corner after swiping a cookie. We can approach boldly, with confidence—not in ourselves, but in who God is and that his invitation is extended to us. As Arther Patzia notes,

Christians have that boldness in approaching God because their faith and union with Christ have given them confidence. In Christ, all barriers have been removed that would keep the believer from approaching God openly and confidently. Christ has revealed the Father as one who has forgiven his children and who loves them.^[2]

To timidly approach God is a direct insult to his character. It’s to say to him, “God, I know you said I could come close, but I don’t trust you enough to take you at your word. So I’m going to play it safe and hold back.”

Timid approaches happen in many different ways. Rather than asking God in faith for something you know is in line with his will, you hedge. Instead of bringing your specific fears to him in prayer, you generalize and ask him to bless your life. And rather than approach God with confidence, you operate as someone who doesn’t believe the gospel and always think of yourself as an outsider.

To boldly approach God with confidence is to adopt a radically different approach. You are not arrogant in your own abilities, but you are confident in who he is.

What Can You Do?

So maybe today, you're feeling a bit like Sturla Holm Laegreid because of some mistakes you've made. If so, confess your sins and start a fresh journey towards God.

Maybe you're not feeling guilt, but you are feeling distant. If so, I challenge you to take one bold step towards God today.

What might that look like?

Here's my suggestion. Instead of avoiding time with God, go straight to him. Spend several minutes today worshipping him for who he is. Then, take out a notecard and write down a very specific, time-sensitive prayer that can have a clear answer. Avoid general language like "give me wisdom," and talk to him like a Father.

Then look for him to show up in this area this week.

You might be surprised how he does.

^[1]Francis Foulkes, Ephesians: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 10 of Tyndale New Testament Commentaries. IVP/Accordance electronic ed. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1989), 106.

^[2]Arthur G. Patzia, Ephesians, Colossians, Philemon, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series. Accordance electronic ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2011), 218.