Running to Win
Bible Reading: Hebrews 11:1-12:1
We sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry it out.
Many of us feel like losers that have dropped out of the race of life. Faith in God can give us the motivation to run the race, with a real chance at life's rewards.
Chapter 11 of Hebrews has been called faith's "Hall of Fame." It refers to people whose lives were used by God because of their faith. The following chapter begins this way: "Since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us" (12:1).
This illustration referred to the Olympic Games. In Bible times, men wore flowing robes. At the time of an event the athletes would strip off their robes and lay them aside to run without encumbrance. If someone tried to compete in his robes, he would get tangled up, losing both the race and the prize.
It is God's will for us to win the race of life. The robes of our recurrent sins need to be laid aside. There will be pain from the exertion, but we're told to pace ourselves and to bear it with patience. And remember, others who have run the same race and finished well are cheering us on!
The closer we come to God, the simpler our lives become.
To purchase this devotional please visit New Life Ministries
Taken from The Life Recovery Devotional: Thirty Meditations from Scripture for Each Step in Recovery by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop. Copyright © 1991 by Stephen Arterburn and David Stoop. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
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