Paul says to find encouragement in these examples of faith and throw off the weight in your life. Throw off the sin that ensnares you. And run, don't walk, run! Run the race that is set before you. Don't think about it for a while, don't make excuses and don't overanalyze it. Just run, run the race with endurance.
The Greek word used for endurance here is the root word for our word Agony. Do you know how to build up endurance? You keep after it, every day, refusing to stop, no matter what!! You endure the agony. You see this in great marathon runners, we see it in Olympic athletes and we see in the men and women of faith.
Back in my younger years, Bev and I did some running. We weren't particularly fast but we ran nonetheless. When we hit the road, we prepared, we stretched, and we took on water. We set our minds to our goal and then we ran - we rarely stopped for any reason.
We set our minds and focused on our goal. We set a pace and gave no thought to slowing down, stopping or turning back. When I wanted to quit, I didn't because she encouraged me and inspired me. When she was dragging, I did the same. This is the role of our family, friends, and our fellowships. We need to encourage each other and energize each other when we begin to slow down and feel pain.
I ran an 8 mile race once on the 4th of July several years ago. It was one of the most grueling things I'd ever done. Many people raced in groups or ran with friends. This was before Bev started running so I was by myself, I set my pace and refused to quit until I reached the end. I felt pain, got hot and couldn't quite catch my breath. I had a thousand excuses to quit. It seemed to be getting hotter with each step. The up hills went on forever. However, as I trained my body to run, I also trained my mind to ignore these signals. The first ten minutes or so I felt all those effects and started feeling that nagging doubt. I'd dealt with it before, though. I refused to quit. Not this step, not the next.
Then, suddenly I topped a hill and the going got easier, I caught a breeze and gulped those cool breaths. Then a child alongside the road began to run with me, looking up at me and cheering me on. There was an older lady in a lawn chair in the shade - she clapped for me. I was flooded with encouragement. I wiped the sweat off my face and felt refreshed. Soon the pain stopped and I found myself in that zone. My body began to operate more like a machine - limited only by fuel and lubrication.
As I entered the last mile, I was used up. My mind had overcome its obstacles but my body was reaching its limitation. I was sweated out, my lungs were burning and I wasn't sure my legs would continue to move. My calves felt like stone as they were starting to knot up and cramp. I went on. I refused to quit. I was so close to the end.
At the last quarter mile of the race I came over the hill and the finish line came into view. Suddenly there were people everywhere and they were cheering and clapping for each person as they approached the end of the race. Everyone that had finished the race lined both sides of the road to cheer on the others as they finished. It wasn't a race about winning or placing, it was about finishing. Knowing that encouragement was there carried me on when I had nothing left.
That's a picture of the great cloud of witnesses Paul tells us about. Their race is over, now they are lined up along the finish to cheer us on and encourage us to finish even when we think we can't take another step. Look for them, they are there. Their lives and testimonies speak to us by the power of the Holy Spirit telling us that we are enduring the same things they endured.
This race we're in isn't a quick sprint. It's a marathon that is sometimes painful and uncomfortable. It's filled with highs and lows; there are times of great encouragement and times when you want to stop and lay down, but you can't quit. The race doesn't stop, even if you stop running. We have to keep going, and as we learn to endure and trust in His power maybe the lows don't seem as low because you get a better memory of the how high the highs are. And you keep running because you have a vision of those who are cheering you on. The pain will last just a little longer. The race will only last a lifetime. Then we have an eternity to talk about the Lord with that great cloud of witnesses. What a great day that will be when we finish our race and meet those who went before us.
It's not running 'a' race but running 'the' race. We are to set our minds to it, set a pace and accept nothing less than finishing by doing our very best. Imagine having those men and women of the hall of faith applaud you as you finish your race. Imagine hearing the words of you Lord saying, 'well done'.
Just thinking about finishing well.
Doug
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