Wednesday, November 01, 2006
I ran in the Big Sur Half-marathon Sunday. Yes, I skipped church to do it. I probably prayed as much during the race as I do in church and with more desperation. I made it to the finish line, which was my goal. A half-marathon is 13.1 miles so I felt like it was a lofty goal. I made it to the finish line in less than two hours, which was my secondary goal. My time was 1:53:45 – I finished in 738th place (which wasn’t a goal). It was a good experience and cemented some very important spiritual lessons in me. I would like to share some of those lessons with you.
Lesson 1 – We start with a smile. The beginning of the race is full of festivity, fun, smiles, anticipation and ceremony. There is some great music being played lots of pictures being taken and plenty of family and friends at the starting point. We hadn’t run a step and I felt great! People were excited about a race that I was about to run. How great is that! One can’t help but have a smile on their face. When the gun sounded we all started with a shout and at the same pace. People lined the streets to get pictures and clap and shout their encouragements to us. Starting the race is fun. Starting the race is easy. Starting the race there are plenty of people to encourage you. It’s that way in our Christian race as well. Everyone seems to start out the Christian marathon with a bang. There are a lot of people to encourage you and you just seem to “be on fire for Jesus” at the start. We all start the race with a smile. Then lesson two hits…
Lesson 2 – A half-marathon is a long race. After mile three not all the racers were smiling. The picture takers were few and not so bunched together. The encouragers grew scarce. The music could not be heard. We were in a race – a long race. Thank God for the water stations along the way. Thank God for some who stood six miles out, seven miles out to shout and clap and encourage the racers. That is interesting, isn’t it? The farther I got from the starting line the more isolated I felt. Now you’re running and your legs hurt a little and your lungs burn a little and there’s a hill in front of you that needs to be considered. There’s not a lot of smiling going on but you see a lot of determination on faces. Sweat replaces a smile. Hard work and focus replaces the fun and festivity. It reminded me that the Christian journey is a marathon race and not a dash. It’s a long run, one that is fraught with hills and miles and less encouragers on the sidelines of life. You run into some pain and some trouble and some heartache after a few miles. And the runners are not all at the same pace. The pack gets spread out and you have to find your own pace. I’ve seen a lot of people start their Christian life out like it was a dash. But the Christian race isn’t a dash; it’s more like a marathon. It’s a long race. The writer of Hebrews must have been a marathon runner. He admonishes those of us who are a few miles out in this race with this solid command, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1). Run the race with perseverance. Run with steady persistence in spite of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement. Run with determination and endurance. Run as light as you can and without things that will keep you from running freely. Run the race to finish the race. Run the race and don’t quit running. Starting a race is easy. But when you get out a few miles it gets tougher and the race requires perseverance because a half-marathon is a long race.
Lesson 3 – The finish line is the best part of the race. My plan was to kick the last two miles but I was running out of energy. I really wanted to slow down instead of kick; I wanted to coast to the finish (maybe crawl would be a more apt description). And something strangely pleasant happened about mile twelve. The crowds along the streets increased. I could hear the music. People were taking pictures and shouting encouragement and clapping. The closer I got to the finish line the more encouragement I received. “You can make it!” someone shouted. “You’re almost there, don’t stop now!” another encouraged. I tell you it was inspiring. My stride lengthened and my resolve grew stronger. I don’t know exactly what happened but I was running faster at the end than I did at the beginning. I knew I was almost there and the people were inspiring me to finish strong.
The first part of Hebrews 12:1 reads this way, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses…” run the race with perseverance. I thought of that verse when I came near the finish line. There’s a cloud of witnesses who cheer us on as we run this race. They have run the race also. Some were martyred, some were tested, some were confused, all were faithful and all ran to the finish line (see Hebrews 11). They are the ones who inspire us to finish strong. They are the ones who know what a marathon race is all about. They are the ones who you can hear if you listen carefully, “You can make it”. “Don’t stop now, you’re almost there”. At the end of the race Sunday we received medals and food and prizes. It was great. I was glad I finished strong. I was glad I gave it my all.
At the end of our Christian race there’s a prize as well. There will be crowns given out and rewards will be received. The greatest prize is Jesus, who is described as the author and finisher of our faith. He ran the race and endured. He finished! I’m very grateful He did. We’re instructed to consider Him, keep our eyes on Him and not lose heart or grow weary (Hebrews 12:2-3).
The half-marathon is over. It was fun, it was challenging and it was instructive. But my full marathon is still in progress. I’m a few miles out but my goal is to finish. I don’t want to crawl to the finish line; I want to kick it out. Do you know what I learned that helps me kick it out to the end? The best part of the race is the finish line. Because at the finish line there’s food and prizes and music and people and Jesus!
Running with perseverance,
Pastor Tim
Lesson 1 – We start with a smile. The beginning of the race is full of festivity, fun, smiles, anticipation and ceremony. There is some great music being played lots of pictures being taken and plenty of family and friends at the starting point. We hadn’t run a step and I felt great! People were excited about a race that I was about to run. How great is that! One can’t help but have a smile on their face. When the gun sounded we all started with a shout and at the same pace. People lined the streets to get pictures and clap and shout their encouragements to us. Starting the race is fun. Starting the race is easy. Starting the race there are plenty of people to encourage you. It’s that way in our Christian race as well. Everyone seems to start out the Christian marathon with a bang. There are a lot of people to encourage you and you just seem to “be on fire for Jesus” at the start. We all start the race with a smile. Then lesson two hits…
Lesson 2 – A half-marathon is a long race. After mile three not all the racers were smiling. The picture takers were few and not so bunched together. The encouragers grew scarce. The music could not be heard. We were in a race – a long race. Thank God for the water stations along the way. Thank God for some who stood six miles out, seven miles out to shout and clap and encourage the racers. That is interesting, isn’t it? The farther I got from the starting line the more isolated I felt. Now you’re running and your legs hurt a little and your lungs burn a little and there’s a hill in front of you that needs to be considered. There’s not a lot of smiling going on but you see a lot of determination on faces. Sweat replaces a smile. Hard work and focus replaces the fun and festivity. It reminded me that the Christian journey is a marathon race and not a dash. It’s a long run, one that is fraught with hills and miles and less encouragers on the sidelines of life. You run into some pain and some trouble and some heartache after a few miles. And the runners are not all at the same pace. The pack gets spread out and you have to find your own pace. I’ve seen a lot of people start their Christian life out like it was a dash. But the Christian race isn’t a dash; it’s more like a marathon. It’s a long race. The writer of Hebrews must have been a marathon runner. He admonishes those of us who are a few miles out in this race with this solid command, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1). Run the race with perseverance. Run with steady persistence in spite of difficulties, obstacles or discouragement. Run with determination and endurance. Run as light as you can and without things that will keep you from running freely. Run the race to finish the race. Run the race and don’t quit running. Starting a race is easy. But when you get out a few miles it gets tougher and the race requires perseverance because a half-marathon is a long race.
Lesson 3 – The finish line is the best part of the race. My plan was to kick the last two miles but I was running out of energy. I really wanted to slow down instead of kick; I wanted to coast to the finish (maybe crawl would be a more apt description). And something strangely pleasant happened about mile twelve. The crowds along the streets increased. I could hear the music. People were taking pictures and shouting encouragement and clapping. The closer I got to the finish line the more encouragement I received. “You can make it!” someone shouted. “You’re almost there, don’t stop now!” another encouraged. I tell you it was inspiring. My stride lengthened and my resolve grew stronger. I don’t know exactly what happened but I was running faster at the end than I did at the beginning. I knew I was almost there and the people were inspiring me to finish strong.
The first part of Hebrews 12:1 reads this way, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses…” run the race with perseverance. I thought of that verse when I came near the finish line. There’s a cloud of witnesses who cheer us on as we run this race. They have run the race also. Some were martyred, some were tested, some were confused, all were faithful and all ran to the finish line (see Hebrews 11). They are the ones who inspire us to finish strong. They are the ones who know what a marathon race is all about. They are the ones who you can hear if you listen carefully, “You can make it”. “Don’t stop now, you’re almost there”. At the end of the race Sunday we received medals and food and prizes. It was great. I was glad I finished strong. I was glad I gave it my all.
At the end of our Christian race there’s a prize as well. There will be crowns given out and rewards will be received. The greatest prize is Jesus, who is described as the author and finisher of our faith. He ran the race and endured. He finished! I’m very grateful He did. We’re instructed to consider Him, keep our eyes on Him and not lose heart or grow weary (Hebrews 12:2-3).
The half-marathon is over. It was fun, it was challenging and it was instructive. But my full marathon is still in progress. I’m a few miles out but my goal is to finish. I don’t want to crawl to the finish line; I want to kick it out. Do you know what I learned that helps me kick it out to the end? The best part of the race is the finish line. Because at the finish line there’s food and prizes and music and people and Jesus!
Running with perseverance,
Pastor Tim
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