Don't be an Also Ran

I am sure that all of us have run races in our lives. It could have been in elementary school on the playground, or it could have been some organized competition. Whatever the situation, the purpose of running the race is to see who will win, not just to run. I pray we will run to win in our Christian life.

Paul uses this analogy to encourage us in the Lord. (I Corinthians 9:24) He asked the question, "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize?" Then, he admonishes us "to run in such a way that you may win." That reminds us that God is watching, and He is ready to give us rewards when we see Him.

The Christian life is a long race. It is like a marathon. We need to get a good start, but then, we need to run with perseverance all the way to the end of our life on earth. As we run, we run according to God's rules, and we run for His glory, not for ourselves. We realize that without Him we can do nothing. It should be our aim to run an excellent race and to win the prize God has for us.

I am afraid that many Christians do not have that mindset about living the Christian life. They are just trying to get by. It is like in a race where they announce the first, second, and third place finishers, but they call the rest "also rans." God isn't pleased with us, if we are just plodding along with no intent to do our best and win the race, so let's make sure we have the right attitude about the race of life. Let's run to win!

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Tomorrow, I intend to read I Corinthians 12-14.