Finishing Strong
I can remember the days of training for that incredible feat
of running 26.2 miles for no reason other than to prove I could. Those days have not completely disappeared
from my mind, and I will do another race soon.
But it’s my approach that has changed a bit. It’s my goal of finishing strong that has
been altered just a tad in order to allow for my step up in age groups. I still have the dreams of finishing more
towards the front of the pack, instead of bringing up the rear, but I realize a
few changes will need to be made in order to finish strong. Life can be this way as well. It can seem, at times, like the long solo
training run where you have no one to talk to, no one to encourage you. Then there are other times where you find
yourself running with thousands, getting more encouragement than you need,
becoming distracted by the revelry and swept away in the pace of the crowd.
The Apostle Paul addresses this issue when it comes to how
to run a good race in life. Paul describes
how we all should be striving to finish strong because we know what our
“imperishable crown” will look like. “Do
you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize?
Run in such a way that you may obtain it.
And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now
they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty.
Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air.
But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have
preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.” 1 Corinthians
9:24-27(NKJV)
The most interesting word in this passage is used to
describe just how we should be in “temperate” in all things. When I searched my thesaurus for words that
could be substituted, a came across things like “calm” or “self-controlled.” This is good advice when running a
marathon. The last thing you want to do
is to attempt to sprint to the finish, or to fling your arms wildly at any time
during the race. You want to be calm and controlled regarding every movement,
every aspect of your gait. This is the
way God wants us to be in our race for the crown of Heaven. Nothing compares to the “official at the
pearly gates” congratulating us on a race well run, and directing us to the
never ending buffet of grace and mercy.
Running a good race includes finding the right pace, the
right amount of fluids, the right shoes, and the right clothing to wear. I could go on and on about the things one
needs to run a good race. Our lives can
have the same needs, having the right attitude, the right approach to others
and the right behavior to get us there. But the most important thing to
remember is that we should be “temperate.”
This means we should have patience with others, we should be calm and
controlled because we know we are going to finish strong. We should feel as if we have won the race,
even when we are at the back of the pack.
We should be proud to wear His medal around our neck because we can
taste the buffet at the end, full of His love, His grace, His forgiveness and
His mercy.
“in the world, not of the world”
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