How To Run Like the Wind In Order To Win In Life
A fellow I used to know said he would never jog because joggers were an unhappy lot. “Have you ever seen a jogger with a smile on his face?” he would ask.
I agree. Even if my knee didn’t wobble and my stomach didn’t jiggle when I jog, I wouldn’t like it. What’s to like about huffing, puffing and sweating?
Back in high school I could never see the need to run unless I was chasing someone who carried a football. But, our football coach thought track and field helped build stamina so he made us participate in the Spring.
I couldn’t run very fast but everyone had to suffer through at least one running event. For most of us that was the 880-yard run.
Usually there was a gaggle of boys from our school meandering along with the snails at the back of the pack. They called it a run but we made it the 880-yard trot.
The shouts of the crowd greeted the upraised arms of the winner a long time before we finished our slow, tortured circle of the course (two times, no less).
The only thing that worried us was the possibility of finishing last. No one wanted to be dead last but there were usually a couple of short, fat, slow guys along for the sweat so no worries there.
Twenty yards before the end of the race we’d sprint like Olympic champions (or trot a little faster) leaving the chubby guys in the dust.
Not exactly noble, huh?
Jogging In the Bible?
Strangely, you find references to foot races sprinkled throughout the Bible. Paul even says we can run with joy! (Acts 20:24).
How in the world can you be joyful when your heart is beating out of your chest, your lungs burn and sweat blinds you ?
You know, now that I think of it, I do believe I’ve seen a few happy people after these races. People call them, “winners.”
A smile of triumph lights their face as they break the tape at the finish line. There are completely exhausted but you don’t notice an ounce of regret. They won! All that work was worth it!
Winners.
The Bible tells us to run in a way that we can win the race that God put us here to run. This is not like earthly races where you’re matched against someone else. The fellow you run against is the one who is all you can be in Christ—yourself.
Every one of us is here for reason. None of us are an accident. God put us on the earth to play a role in His plan.
We can goof off and do just enough to make it or complain that we’re worthless, but I wonder if there won’t come a time when we’re ashamed of our laziness towards what God called us to do.
“Or, to put it another way, you are God’s house. Using the gift God gave me as a good architect, I designed blueprints; Apollos is putting up the walls. Let each carpenter who comes on the job take care to build on the foundation! Remember, there is only one foundation, the one already laid: Jesus Christ. Take particular care in picking out your building materials. Eventually there is going to be an inspection. If you use cheap or inferior materials, you’ll be found out. The inspection will be thorough and rigorous. You won’t get by with a thing. If your work passes inspection, fine; if it doesn’t, your part of the building will be torn out and started over. But you won’t be torn out; you’ll survive—but just barely.
“You realize, don’t you, that you are the temple of God, and God himself is present in you?” (1 Cor. 3:10-16, The Message)
Our Heavenly Coach Teaches Us How To Run To Win
Winners don’t simply accept what everyone else accepts. They’re not aiming to outrun the little, short-legged fellow. They want to win.
Here’s how to run like that:
The winner disciplines his life so that he can run well (1 Cor. 9:26, 27).
He stops doing things that hurt his body and spirit and slow him down (1 Pet. 4:4).
He runs wisely (Gal. 2:2), pacing himself so that he can hold out for the entire race, even when it starts to hurt (Heb. 12:1)
He runs to win! (1 Cor. 9 :24)
Running to win costs us en energy, pain and the willpower it takes to give 100%. But, I don’t think that price is as expensive as the pain of losing the race.
Will there ever be an experience to compare with having Jesus place the victor’s crown on our head ? Are you running to win that?
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