EASTER V

May 7, 2023

“Running With Perseverance”     

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.”     ( Hebrews 12:1-2)      

Don’t these spring days raise your spirits?  Everywhere you look, you’ll see leaves popping out on trees, tulips and daffodils bursting forth, and growth and activity at every turn.  On our street, a sure sign of spring occurred when we spotted members of the high school track team running through the neighborhood and then looping back to the school.      

One beautiful spring day, I was driving on the street between the school and the football field/track complex, and saw dozens of students heading down the long, sloping hill to the track.  The beginners were easy to spot, as they appeared a little uncertain, mostly just trying to keep up with their fellow first-timers.  Others were running in a rather show-offish way, perhaps wanting to look really athletic.  A few trudged along, heads down, possibly rethinking this whole “track team” idea.  Most appeared to be pacing themselves, enjoying the downhill slope to the field as they knew there was a demanding practice session ahead of them.     

A couple days later, again driving on the same street, I spotted the runners heading back toward the high school.  In a marked difference to the first time I’d seen them, many were plodding up the hill that had been such a pleasant, gentle slope earlier but was now steep and long.  Those young leg muscles had been getting a workout, and weren’t quite so fresh and springy.  I recalled a quote in which new Christians were encouraged to “run with perseverance the race that is set before us,” and later found it in the book of Hebrews.     

The call to follow Christ being likened to a foot race is both timeless and universal, and as we read these words, we can see in our mind’s eye runners striving to go as fast and as far as they are able, and then a little more.  And we know for sure it’s a marathon, not a sprint!     

As we live out our calling to be Christ’s people in the world, we may experience the feeling of being uncertain beginners, might at times act as though we know what we’re doing, and other times wonder why we’re trying at all.  But with Christ alongside us, we are able to persevere, and we run, we jump the hurdles, we hand the baton to our teammate, and we give it our best, and then we trudge back up the hill and do it all again the next day.      

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.  From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness,”  (2 Timothy 4:7-8a) 

And yes, I was watching where I was driving!

Your friend in Christ,  

Mary Rogers