Romans 8:37,38—No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The only marathon I’ve ever run (and will ever run for that matter), was the San Diego Marathon. I trained hard and enjoyed running along the coastline. I determined to run at a 7:00 minute/mile pace. I was psyched on the day of the race to meet my goal of completing the 26+ mile race in under 3 hours.
I started off fast, too fast. Somehow I became part of a pack of runners racing at a 6:45/mile clip. It felt good to run with these guys, at least for 18 miles. Then I realized there was no way I could continue the pace for eight more long miles. So I slowly faded back until eventually I ran alone. This was made even more difficult by the realization that too much early speed had left me with no reserve to draw upon. By the last mile I was walking, cramping up, in pain and in trouble. But one thing kept me going. My sister ran her marathon in 3 hours and 9 minutes. There was no way I was going to let her beat me. So in agony and on the fumes of male-pride, somehow I staggered across the finish line in 3 hours and 8 minutes!
Life is like a marathon. There are times we run euphoric (my apologies to those of you who hate running). There are times when the rain and wind whips against us and we wonder why we ever bothered. But always in our mind should be the realization that we are not running alone. Our Lord is with us and promises to bring us safely to the finish line when He will change us in a twinkling of an eye! Our worn bodies will be replaced! Sin will be a thing of the past. Life will be perfect. We must persevere. The finish is not only out of this world, it is eternally rewarding!
Forward! Move ahead today through each obstacle and challenge you face knowing that as you move in faith, trusting God, He is with you. God delights in our faith. Through Him we overcome—a through that is based on our willingness to walk or run amidst obstacles as we trust Him to fortify us in His awe-inspiring love. Don’t quit—keep after it!
Inspiration
God does not give us overcoming life; He gives us life as we overcome . . . If we will do the overcoming, we shall find we are inspired of God because He gives life immediately.—Oswald Chambers in My Utmost For His Highest
