The Race

August 10, 2012 As I sit in front of my computer studying for sermon this week and I started thinking about faith and the books I have read about faith and of the things I learned is that you need to stay focused. No matter what we do in life, in order to be victorious we need to keep our eyes on the prize. This is also true in the natural. If you’re a golfer, you know that after you’ve taken your swing the ball is going to in the direction the club is pointes. If you do any trail bike riding you find this same principle goes into action. There is a mental mindset you need, you will steer where you are looking. If you take your eyes off the trail, that is exactly where you will end up, off the trail. That is why texting is so dangerous because you don’t where you’re steering. That’s the way it with our Christian walk. If we don’t keep our eyes on the author and finisher of faith, Jesus, we will run off the road. When runner’s run in a race they need to keep their eye on the finish line. They don’t look behind, because when they do they get their eyes off the finish line. 1 Corinthians 9:24-2724 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 25 And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a perishable crown, but we for an imperishable crown. 26 Therefore I run thus: not with uncertainty. Thus I fight: not as one who beats the air. 27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified. NKJV We are exhorted to run in such a way to obtain it. How do we obtain it? Before athletes compete the practice, listening to some of the Olympians, I hear the same thing repeated over and over again. I workout and practice 6 days a week for 6-8 hours a day. They do this for that one day where they might receive a gold medal. I started to think about it and the verse of scripture in 1 Corinthians 9 Paul says don’t run with uncertainty or just beat the air. But Paul gives us the secret. He tells how he did it, Paul disciplined his body and brought into submission. There are times I don’t want to study, but I do. I discipline myself to study at least 3 hours every day, sometimes more, 5 days a week, this is do I can deliver a message twice a week, this does include my personal time with the Lord. When I deliver my message I want to deliver a gold medal to those that are hearing it. Philippians 3:12-14, 12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. NKJV Paul is telling us here in these verses, none of us have attained or are perfected in the natural, but we need to press on. Not looking back, runners never look back, but reaching forward to those things which are a head. We need to press forward toward the goal. We do this by simply keeping our eyes on Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, Hebrews 12:2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our