10-19-2024 8:31pm

Strong spirits: run the race

Photo: Gregory Regalado

I was privileged yesterday to attend the running of the Chicago Marathon. What a spectacle! 50,000 people running the streets of Chicago- all different types of people, all with one goal: run 26.2 miles and finish the race.

I used to run. But I ran short stuff- sprints- as fast as I could, for a very short period. And as much as I loved doing that, I realized that the commitment to a marathon is much higher. Training, determination, sacrifice, pain, and a wholehearted commitment to finish the race.

The Bible in several places talks about life, and in particular the life of faith in following Jesus, as a race. And it's not a sprint!

"My only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me... (Paul the apostle Acts 20:24) "

...let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us..." (Hebrews 12:1)

It must be exhausting to run a marathon. And it is exhausting to run the race God has marked out for us! But he gives us the strength to do it! Don't quit! Keep going! He's running with you every step of the way!

Besides serving as pastor at Caledonia Congregational Church, Gary Schwerin is the Spiritual Development Minister for the YMCA of the Rock River Valley and Executive Director of Bridge Ministries of Rockford. Prior to launching Bridge Ministries, Gary spent many years in leadership with Young Life. His columns appear here every Sunday - to see them all, subscribe to our daily email.