Success Scripture August 12, 2008

Hebrews 12:1

"Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us"

The eyes of the world are now on the athletes at the world's greatest sports competition, the Olympics, where the victory is not in winning a medal but in just being there and competing. After all, everyone there had to be the best just to be selected to compete.

That's what the scripture says about us and says to us. God selected us to "run with endurance the race that is set before us". Note the word "endurance". God wants us to keep on regardless of the opposition we experience.

The "race" analogy is good for our daily lives. A runner cannot win if they don't stay focused on finishing. They can't win if they are busy watching the other runners to see how they are doing. Yet we, as Christians, often take time looking at others to see how they are doing compared to us. Ironically, the only way to really see what everyone else is doing is to be dead last in the race and if we spend time evaluating how others are doing, that is how we will finish our race.

Our qualification to compete was made possible by God's Grace and, like athletes; we must train every day to build up our strength to run the race set before us. The best athletes don't get that way by just being a little better than the others. They don't even pay attention to how the others are doing, but they do constantly strive to improve THEIR OWN performance.

How should we finish? Here's what the Word says:

Acts 20:24 - "But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God."

You're blessed!

Bliss & Fire Team

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