Beyond the Finish Line: How to run the race set before us
Sometimes it feels like I am running a marathon with no training! And I feel like someone keeps pushing back the finish line. Yet, I keep running. Why? Because the race set before me is still going.
Fixing Our Eyes beyond the Finish Line
I was a runner at one time. I enjoyed the challenge of beating a time. That was the point of the race. Either beat your own PR (personal record) or beat the person beside you. I fixed my eyes on the finish line. I had one place to go, and I was always aware of my time and those around me. However, the race I am on now is quite different.
The race I am currently running requires a much harder training. It is not about hurrying to the finish line or beating a time. It is about going at a pace that allows me to fix my eyes on the Creator of the finish line rather than the finish line itself (Hebrews 12:2). It requires a resilience, perseverance, and endurance that is harder than any requirement for a physical race.
The resilience, perseverance, and endurance needed to keep my eyes focused on Jesus and not the finish line is a fierce training in and of itself! Sometimes it requires me to go fast, to wait and be still, or to run slow. I mentioned earlier that sometimes it feels like the finish line keeps moving. Maybe that is because I am making events, people, or things the finish line. Maybe that is true for all of us. Maybe we are placing so much emphasis on the finish line (i.e. a job, a home, relationships, etc.), God has to halt us because we have lost sight of the Prize.
If we do not run the race well or slack off on what is needed to endure the race, we will find ourselves flopping at the finish line. We may miss it, barely make it, or simply lose sight of it. However, Hebrews 12:1-2 helps us to identify the endurance, resilience, and perseverance needed to run the race set before us.
Tips for Racing Well
1) Running with perseverance
The Greek word for perseverance, hupomoné, means to “patiently endure.” That seems counterintuitive, doesn’t it? If we are enduring something, it is most likely something we do not want to do or experience. However, we are called not only to endure, but also to do so patiently. And none of this comes naturally to us. Yet, to fix our eyes on the Prize, the Perfecter of our faith, this is what we are called to do.
This type of enduring requires us to fix our eyes on Christ. We cannot endure the sickness, the loss, the divorce, the loneliness, etc. without keeping our eyes on the Overcomer. If we lose sight of Jesus, we lose sight of the course, the witnesses surrounding us, and the joy set before us.
To persevere may look like resting, asking for help, talking with someone, or surrendering our wants, desires, hopes, and dreams to Jesus. It will not be easy (enduring usually is not), but it will allow us to release what entangles us.
2) Throw off everything that hinders and entangles
The hinderances that so entangle us can be a recurrent sin, an unbalanced desire, or even good things that have become idols. Whichever hinderance it is, it can be heavy and easily distract us. Instead of fixing our eyes on Jesus, we fix our eyes on the things of this earth which may lead us to lose sight of the “race marked out for us” (Hebrews 12:1).
To lessen the likelihood of becoming entangled and hindered in the race, we can implement a few practices. For instance, surrendering our desires to God and seeking first his kingdom may be a first step in shaking off what so easily entangles us (Matthew 6:33). Additionally, praying for God to search and know our hearts to see if there is any offensive way in us so we may go “in the way everlasting,” the course before us (Psalm 139:23-24). Moreover, studying God’s word enables us to hide his word in our hearts that we might not sin against him (Psalm 119:11). Lastly, putting on God’s armor daily is necessary so that we may stand against the enemy’s schemes to make us lose sight of the course we are on (Ephesians 6:10-17). Practicing these acts can aid us in running a race in freedom.
3) The great cloud of witnesses
If you are an introvert like me, this may seem overwhelming at first. The thought of anyone watching me makes me want to stay hidden! However, this is a different kind of watch party!
These witnesses are God’s children. They are people whose example we can follow to know how to run this race. We have a cheering squad to root for us to be courageous when we are scared, to keep going when we want to give up, and reminds us of our significance when we feel we do not matter. God, along with other people he provides us, offers us opportunities to hear and know that he is for us (Romans 8:31). We are not running this race alone!
Not only do we have people cheering us on, but also there may be people running beside us bearing witness to the pain we are enduring as well as offering us the perseverance and resilience we need to stay the course. These individuals have experienced what we are experiencing and share with us the comfort they have received throughout their race (2 Corinthians 1:4). They, too, are witnesses that encourage us to “not grow weary or lose heart,” but to finish strong (Hebrews 12:3).
Final Thoughts
Running the race set before us is not easy. It requires strength beyond our own as well as resilience and perseverance we can only attain through Christ. And when we commit ourselves to the race, keep our eyes on the Perfecter of our faith, throwing off everything that hinders and entangles us, and listen to the roar of the great cloud of witnesses above the world’s roar, we can run and not grow weary! We can finish this race knowing who will be greeting us at the finish line! Amen!