Running the Race

“…Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus...”

– Hebrews 12:1-2

Do you run?

I wished I loved running. I don’t. I love walking and being outside. But running, not so much…

But I do know, before we can run, we must first walk.

Before we can walk, we learn to stand.

Before we stand, we learn to crawl.

Before we can crawl, we must be able to sit up.

On this journey of life, we can get knocked down so often. And when we do, we have a choice as to whether we just give up and stay down…or whether we build up enough spiritual muscle to sit back up again.

If our eyes are fixed on Jesus, we will always be able to get back up again. But if our eyes stray from Him, we will fall flat on our face… possibly again and again.

Perseverance is a dang hard thing! But we’re not in it alone. We will never be able to fulfill the plan God’s set out for us, without the Holy Spirit’s power in us. It’s by His strength that we keep breathing… keep sitting back up, keep crawling until our wobbly legs are strong enough to get us to stand again.

Spiritual perseverance is an attitude of the heart, not defined by physical attributes or by our own strength, but by our heart’s desire to give our all to Jesus.

So how’s your heart today? Can you still claim Jesus is your focus? Regardless of what the physical life around you may look like…

Does the attitude of your heart still cry, “He’s worthy of fighting this race for!”?

The beautiful intricate plan (race) God has marked out for us, is not all flowery and thistle-free…. This race calls us to strip off all the extra weight that we’re carrying. This race chisels away at all the excess – demanding we throw off everything that is hindering us from Jesus being our one and only focus.

It’s not easy.

But I believe with my whole heart, that He’s worth it all.

He is our living Hope. He is, what it takes to go all in – mind, body, soul, and strength. He’s why we persevere. He’s why we sit up, crawl until we can stand, and then walk… faster and faster, until one day we realize somewhere along the way…we started running.

With our eyes fixed on Him, let’s determine to keep running our race.