Since Jesus broke into my selfish half-life of sadness and made me believe that I was born for a purpose, I have believed that my life belongs to Him and that if I trust Him and continually pursue Him, I will continue to grow in wisdom, love and holiness throughout the length of my life. I dream of my future--"confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work, will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6.)" I know that if I stand for Him and run with Him then at the end of my life, I will be able to say as Paul said, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith(2 Tim 4:7.)"
Throughout each year, I collect my dreams, catalog my strengths, look for open doors that I could burst through into the destiny that most assuredly awaits me around the next corner. That destiny I discover will lead to a life of continuous inspiration exponentially hurtling toward a glorious completion that ends my life with "Well done good and faithful servant; enter into my rest (Matt 25:23.)" However, as we usually don't go bursting into destinies or hurtling into much of glorious anything, it seems that most people don't usually cross their finish lines of life in flashes of light among cheering crowds. So what does it really look like to finish the race?
I turned thirty last year. Whatever I am supposed to be doing with my life, whatever I will be when I grow up, whatever "destiny" awaits me, should be starting any day now. I believe in my dreams and I hold on to them, but they still exist out there somewhere in the unreachable "someday." And I panic a little when I think that if my "someday" doesn't come, when I get to the end of my race, I'll realize it never came and I never began the race which I was going to gloriously run and finish. How tragic it would be to realize that not only did you not win the race, you never began.
Right now my race consists of taking care of my family, loving my friends, serving my church body, knowing God more through His Word, being an example of the light and love of Christ wherever I can and looking for opportunities to do good wherever I can. This happens everyday while I go to the store, take the kids to school, greet customers at work and all those other little things. But its also more than that. My race also means believing. I race to believe all things are possible, all things work together for good and that all things are found in Him, completed in Him, for Him and by Him (Matt 19:26, Rom 8:28, Phil 3:8, Rom 11:36.)
While I am inspired to run and believe in this way, the sum total of these things hardly seems like a glorious destiny. I wish that I was following a more focused passion; a calling or set of steps that leads to a direct result--something that feels like a race with a charted course and ultimate reward.
But this is my race. If the current course doesn't look the way I want it to, I wonder how the end will look? What does a well run race look like in today's world? Do we have to go on mission trips, become pastors of large churches, start revivals, write inspirational books, heal multitudes, be martyred? For all those Christians who have lived a life of faith, what happens to them in their final years? Are they more righteous, more full of love, closer to Christ?
The purpose of this blog is for me to think about, learn about and write about the idea of "finishing the race," in hopes that I can live my life on purpose, "pressing on toward the mark of the high calling of Jesus Christ.(Phil 3:14)" I hope to study what the Bible says about "finishing well," along with chatting with older Christians about their races, and reading biographies of Christians who have"finished well."
If you are reading this, I hope you'll be patient with me as I sort through ideas and piece together conclusions. Since this will be a tool to work out ideas, I'm going to write often and without fear of sounding good or making sense. Along with your understanding I'd be pleased to have your thoughts and comments.
