“Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)
People like to run marathons these days; why, I have no idea. I know some “runners”, and in every other area of their lives, they are normally well adjusted people. But I have no idea what possesses them to spend a day torturing themselves to run 26.3 miles. I can hardly drive that far without taking a break. I know they are in a lot better shape than I am, but hey, “pear” is a shape also. Yes, there is the satisfaction of accomplishment for tackling a challenge like running a marathon. But it seems to me like there would be better ways to get that fulfillment. Maria my daughter ran a half marathon a while back, and she was a mess for days afterward, and she is young! I know that the “runners” out there feel sorry for my ignorance. I realize that I cannot understand their experience, just like many of them cannot understand my life. But I do not care to “understand” the thrill of jumping out of a perfectly good airplane, or climbing a treacherous mountain, or subjecting my body to such grueling punishment. So pray for me.
Just recently, a marathon runner in England tried to pull a fast one on everyone. A couple of miles into the race, he ducked out of the crowd and jumped on a city bus. He got off a mile or so before the finish line, and snuck back on to the track and “finished” the marathon in third place. A woman tried that a while back in either the Boston or New York marathon and actually “won” the race in “record setting time”, until they found out what she had done. Nice try, but those things don’t result in gaining the prize of completing a marathon.
Our life is a race for the glory of God. The average marathon takes a few hours to run, but life is a marathon that takes years. I am already 58 years into mine, and I still have a long way to go. Unfortunately, the vast majority of believers in Christ are like the “cheaters” in the marathon races I mentioned. They are “running” their race by jumping on the first bus they can find, content to let someone else drive them to the finish line. They will come to church on Sunday and do God the favor of listening to the preacher pour his guts out through the word. But to actually get in the race and give out the word themselves? Why? Isn’t that the pastor’s job? They have the same attitude toward the work of Christ that I do toward running 26.3 miles. No way, Jose. Their spiritual “Lazy Boy” is far more appealing.
Paul used sports analogies often enough in the Bible that he must have been a “sports geek” like the rest of us guys. In I Corinthians 9:24, he said, “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.” Play to win. There is something about the competitive juices that brings out the best in people (and granted, sometimes the worst). In the same passage, he talks about the incorruptible crown of the Judgment Seat of Christ. God does not care who wins a stupid game with a ball and a stick, or who crosses the finish line first in a marathon. But he will reward his children for a “life race” run for his honor. Just remember that it is a marathon. Don’t go running out there with your hair on fire in a dead sprint. No one will pay any attention to you. A marathon is run in consistency. The runner sets a pace and runs almost “automatically” in a steady gait. The Bible says to run “with patience”. Develop some consistent spiritual practices in prayer, giving, study, and witness. Then keep up the pace. There are no short cuts. Stay at it regularly, even when – and especially when – it seems as if your legs are going to fall off and your heart is going to jump right out of your chest. Paul rejoiced that he had “finished his course” (II Timothy 4:7). May you have the same confidence.
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