Up
and Moving
Do you not know that in a race all the
runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get
the prize.
1 Corinthians 9:24
Carl rubbed the sleep from his eyes and
swung his feet to the floor. The digital clock read 4:15. Maybe I
oughta just stay in bed this morning. After all…I don’t
have to leave for work until 8:00. But as much as his flesh
wanted him to pull the covers back over his head, his spirit knew he
would feel differently about things once he was up and moving. Twenty
minutes later, in the second mile of his run, that fact was being
born out.
Carl was training for an upcoming
marathon. And although he’d been running each morning for more than
ten years, the debate over whether to stay in bed or go for his
morning run was a familiar one. It never lasted more than a moment
these days but he remembered when he’d first begun running. It had
required determination to overcome the desire to lie back down. Carl
had never forgotten his coach’s admonition: “If you fail to
prepare properly you will most certainly not perform at the level you
expect.”
By ascribing to his coach’s training
philosophy, Carl had improved his personal best in almost every race
he’d run, and was now considered a worthy opponent by his peers.
†
Our spiritual life must be lived with
this same level of conviction and determination. If we are to rise
above the temptation to lay down in defeat we must live with purpose,
fostering a winning spirit.
Paul says we’re fooling ourselves if
we run with anything less than the expectation of winning, because if
we fail to give the best we have each and every day, we’ve already
begun to lose the race.
When Satan plants seeds of
indifference, “Stay home today, you’re tired… or…You
can let devotions go today…you’re on top of things,” we can
only blame him for the whisper; whether we lie down or persevere is
our choice.
Paul exhorts us to win! If you’re
tired, encourage yourself to prevail…you’ll feel differently
about things once you’re up and moving!
Prayer
“Birth in me a
determination to excel in my spiritual life, Lord. Awaken in my
spirit a desire to run to win! In Jesus’ Name, amen.”
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