Win the Prize

The Olympic Games are just around the corner. In those games the athletes are going to be competing for the ultimate prize, an Olympic gold medal. A few talented athletes will realize that dream and walk away with the prize. For many others they already know that barring a miracle there is no way they will win a medal let alone the gold. So why are they there? Why run if you have little realistic chance of getting through the heats of the 100m. Why run if your you're going to be ten minutes off the pace for the marathon?

Why? They run to compete, they run to represent their country, they run to do the best they can on the day. They run because that's what they do, they run.

I run.

I have a medals to prove that I run. They're not Olympic gold medals, they're not even winners medals. They are competitors finish medals! I've run marathons and I've finished and probably no one except me could care less. The feeling of crossing that finish line after 26.2 miles is one of the greatest feeling in the world.

The apostle Paul reminds us, "that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize." He then urges us to "run in such a way as to get the prize." Do you have to finish first to get the prize? No, you don't, you only have to compete and finish well to win the prize in the race of life.

I run the race of life to represent the kingdom of God, I do the best I can on any given day. I will run and I will finish well. How about you?