Read: 1
Corinthians 9:24-27
And every
man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown;
but we an incorruptible.
1 Corinthians 9:25
A few years
ago I came across a quote in a running magazine that I suppose was someone’s
running mantra. It said, “Run until you can’t run anymore; until your feet ache
and your lungs burn and every muscle in your body is screaming ‘Stop!’ – then
turn around and run home.” The point of the mantra is to help a person to press
on despite feeling tired or worn out. Continue pressing forward; continue
placing one foot in front of the other regardless of how badly it may hurt.
Many runners, myself included, have gone out for a practice run and felt like
turning around after five minutes of running. Not every day is going to be
easy, and their bodies will not feel perfectly all the time. That doesn’t mean
they can just give in, however. Most runners have an end goal in mind. They are
training for a race or an endurance run that they can claim as their victory.
To stop early in a practice run would be defeating the overall goal. It would
not help them reach the finish line later on.
The Christian life could fit perfectly
into that running mantra. Press on for Christ until you feel like you can go no
further. Knock on doors to invite people out to church and tell them of Christ
until your feet ache and all of your natural senses are yelling at you to stop.
Then go knock on another door. Work with the bus kids until you are worn down
and ready to quit, then go out on another Saturday and Sunday to pick them up
for church. Volunteer to help beautify the church buildings and grounds when
you are already tired from other things you have done that week, and do it with
all your heart. The easy thing to do is what, sadly, most Christians are doing
today. They are resting when they should be running forward. They are playing
when they should be working for Christ. They are struggling in sin when they
should be striving toward the goal of what God wants them to accomplish in this
life.
For the Christian who is willing to spend
and be spent for Christ, God has a much better prize than just the ease that
they can enjoy on earth. Those who push themselves to their physical limits for
Christ live with a much loftier goal in mind than those Christians who only
want to take it easy. They are striving to win the prize that they will one day
receive as they kneel before their Saviour. Then it will be worth it all.
Quote
of the day: “If it wasn’t hard, everyone would do it. It’s the hard that makes
it great.”
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