First thing I need to do today is say Happy Birthday to my wonderful daughter Kristin! I love you baby girl.
Now on to the the long lost art of blogging. It seems I have been away far too long.
Some say life is a marathon. I say life is a series of runs. Some long and grueling and some short and downhill. Sometimes God assigns us to a race and sometimes He allows us to choose, in our brilliance or stupidity where and how we run (no God sovereignty comments here please). Right now I am on day 9 of 37 straight days of sprinting, and I am already tired. I feel the headwinds coming and I see an incline up ahead. What am I to do? Let’s look at the options.
1. Go hard then quit. A lot of people would simply say to me, “give it your best as long as you can and then don’t worry about it.” Tell that to wedding number 5 this month, or to the couple who is struggling in their marriage and need to talk to me even though I have already had 3 counseling sessions that day. Quitting is not an option for me or for you. It does not matter how hard you go if you do not finish. Remember the words of the Word. “Let your yes be yes. Do everything as to the Lord.” I could go on but you get it, right? Once you get in the starting blocks, you finish the race.
2. Gut it out and complain the whole way. This is my favorite. While I run, I can make sure and breathe hard, moan and limp a little, and mock those weaklings who haven’t got the guts to take on the load I am toting. Once again the Word trumps me. “Do all things without complaining. Rejoice in the Lord always, AGAIN I say REJOICE!”
3. Just slow down. Go ahead and kick into a jog and see how many people you let down. I know, I know, we can only do so much. We need balance, etc, etc. According to the Bible that is bull. Jesus was not looking for disciples pursuing balance. He was looking for disciples who would take up the cross, run with endurance, and run to win. Joggers don’t win much. They have well regulated breathing and steady heart rates, but they don’t win the race.
4. Put your head back, run hard, and remember Who is running in you. It hit me today on the treadmill. I was in mile 4, hating life, despising the run, looking at the miles ahead with dread and anger (both metaphorically and literally). Then I remembered something. Yep, it was from the Word again. “I am with you ALWAYS. Christ in YOU the hope of glory. I can do ALL things through Him.” Do I need to continue? I re-focused, sped up the machine, and finished the run. Yes, I was tired but I was also strengthened by the renewing of my mind. Without Christ I am puny, but in Him I am a warrior who can keep running until the rest comes.
I hope to see you a little more in the days and weeks to come, but no promises. There are other sprints that I have to run before I write.
Gotta run,
Steve
