Finishing, Godliness, and Boston

And to your steadfastness, add godliness - 2 Peter 1:6

Here's a sobering thought. Someone does not want you to finish the race.

I was thinking this week about those in the Boston Marathon who fell short of just finishing the race.  They trained hard, and came so close, and then in a moment were told that the race was over.  On top of that, many had family and friends waiting for them at the finish line. Not only would these family and friends not see them finish – there was a sudden concern if they were even alright. 

Now they fell short, not in part to something they did but because of the actions of others.  In all the races that I have run I have never failed to finish. But I know many who have started the race and for whatever reason have had to drop out.  There are many distractions that we will encounter along the way, There are many battles, some big and some small that have to be fought.  These distractions can take us away from our ultimate goal of finishing the race.  True wisdom comes from knowing which battles to fight and which battles to let go.

 In 2002 I ran the Air Force Marathon.  I had just completed Mile 25 when my leg cramped and I fell to the ground.  I was on pace for my best time ever but now found myself on the side of the road trying to get up.  After several minutes I was able to battle the cramps and move on.  I finished in 4:07.  Still my best time ever.  I could have given up.  I had good reason to.  But the finish line was in sight and that motivated me to continue on.  I’m glad I did.

There are many people in life though that have given up on running the race.  They started out strong, but got sidetracked.  It may have been an illness that caused it, or financial difficulty, or the betrayal of a friend.  There are problems that occur outside of our control that we must deal with – and to do so we must keep our eyes on the finish line. 

Sadly there are also those that do not finish because of things they can control.  They took their eyes off the finish line and put it on other things – material success, fame, sex, to name  a few.

 

 This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith.

 1 Timothy 1:19-20

 

Satan does not want us to finish the race – he wants us to get sidetracked. 

That's where godliness comes in.  In its simplest form godliness is being like God.  Being godly means that we focus on the things that God focuses on.  It means being holy, set apart, for God's purposes.

It means keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus – the Finish Line.

We will always have the distractions, the nuisance battles to fight.  Let's do our best to trust Christ for their victory and keep our focus on the eternal.  Yes I know that it is hard to focus on the eternal when there are bills to be paid and relationships to be mended.  It’s hard to focus on Christ when there are temptations that try to draw us away.  But much like the side pains you feel when overexerting yourself these distractions are just a nuisance –they will pass if we focus on Christ. 

The day after the Boston Marathon several hundred runners met in the Boston streets to run.  Amidst all the chaos and other distractions they wanted to prove that a couple madmen were not going to bring them down.

For those of us who profess faith in Christ – how much greater should be our resolve?

Add godliness, and let’s finish the race.

 

Run On!

 

I almost gave up on this blog – but …

I just finished a half marathon last weekend, and although somewhat pleased with my time I began to think when I was around mile 11 that I had trained for 12 miles and not 13.1.  At about mile 12 I was ready to be done.  It was a beautiful spring morning, but I along with the other runners, had been battling the wind and temperatures about 20 degrees higher than I had been training in.   But I had trained, and I had been adding to my training all the necessary ingredients to make it to the finish line.  I wasn’t about to quit at mile 12.  I would finish the race. 

– for as we add to our faith, the next step is steadfastness:

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, ⁶ and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness,  and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love.  For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1: 5-8)

Steadfastness encompasses a lot of qualities – and giving up isn’t one of them.  It is being firm in belief, determined, constant, dedicated, and steady.  It is hanging in when the time gets tough.  It’s coming to grips that even though everything is not going according to MY plan, if I have been following HIS plan, God will see me through to the finish – and I will be successful. 

So if you’ve been following the Master’s training plan - trust your training – and add steadfastness to your faith along with self-control, knowledge, and virtue.

Yes, it’s been a while since I added to this blog, because some things have to be lived before they can be written about.  Life and work have been hectic lately and blogging has taking a back seat to other pressing matters – but consistency in prayer and being in God’s Word has not. 

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. (Colossians 4:2)

 Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain. (1 Corinthians 15:58)

Run On!

 

I have fought the good fight

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

2 Timothy 4:7

It’s been a bit since I added to this blog, and this is definitely not the post I wanted to write. My brother Greg unexpectedly passed away last night. Greg is not supposed to be gone, not now. We had a race to run – Greg, his wife, and me– the Piittsburgh Marathon, May 6, 2012. That is why this blog started. That is what we both were looking forward to.

You see, I have run marathons before – 7 in all. But over the last 8 years I stopped running. Yeah, life happened – 4 more kids, job changes, getting older. Got a bit out of shape too. And my knees hurt, really hurt – but not bad enough to impress the doctors to do anything drastic. Then my sister-in-law Lynn, Greg’s wife started running. She posted a lot on FaceBook – “ran this many miles, etc” I was happy for her, but jealous. I missed running. Then a year or so ago Greg started running – lost a lot of weight and looked real good. So proud of him. I was jealous enough to give running a try again – actually it was like God prompted me to get back, maybe to connect with Greg, maybe to write this blog. But my knees! Almost a year later and the knees haven’t been a problem. Greg says it was I who encouraged him to run the Pittsburgh Marathon, but actually dear brother; it was you who encouraged me. I wish I could have told you.

Greg has been an encouragement to me. He gave his life to Christ before me and helped lead me to Christ. In return, I introduced him to his wife. We went to college together, lived on the same street for a few years while I was stationed in Florida. Greg loved the Lord, and served Him well. He fought the good fight, he finished the race – he kept the faith. I will miss you brother – but we still have a race to run together – and I look forward to it. Just let me know what kind of running shoes work best on streets of gold.

Until then, I’ll keep running.

Donuts, Running, and Self Control

It’s 5 AM on a cold February Saturday morning.   The training plan calls for a 16 mile run but the body is calling for more sleep, then a nice hot cup of coffee and a relaxing morning by the fireplace. 

It’s 6 AM on a Wednesday morning. The plan calls for reading four chapters in the Bible and a time of prayer.  The mind is racing with all that has to be done today – important meeting at work that I haven’t prepped for yet, a backlog of emails, reports that have to get out, another meeting after church.

Deciding to step up our training – whether physically or spiritually, always brings up a new set of challenges.  The path is not going to be easy, it wasn’t meant to be easy.  But we must follow it in order to succeed. 

2 Peter 1 tells us to add to our faith – virtue. To virtue – knowledge, and know tour our knowledge – self-control.   Virtue gives us the motivation to start, to put aside what hinders us.  Knowledge shows us how to progress.  Self-control helps us follow the plan – even when other things challenge for our time and energy.  It is our weapon against excuses.

It’s so easy to indulge ourselves in the simple pleasures.  I know in order to perform well as a runner, I must watch what I eat.  But I also like donuts.  And where I work they are often plentiful.  In order for me to spend time with God I need to get up early.  I also like sleep.  But those early morning times are often the only quiet times I get during the day to read my Bible and pray – and often to get a run in for that day.  So I’m up before 5 AM.

Knowledge is a wonderful thing.  Knowledge tells us what we need to do to be successful and why it is needed.  Knowledge tells us more about who God is and how we can trust Him.   Self-control helps us put that knowledge to use.  
 

 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 says:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize?  So run that you may obtain it.  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things.  They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others i myself should be disqualified.

 Knowledge isn’t of much use unless we put forth the self-control to apply it.  I can learn all about running, how to get faster, how to eat and exercise to obtain more endurance – but unless I put it into practice and make the sacrifices to apply it, it’s just useless knowledge.  So it is too with spiritual knowledge. 

 

So as we add knowledge – let’s not let it go to waste – add self-control!

 

And run on!

Knowlege - Developing Your Training Plan

And to your faith add … knowledge

When I ran my first marathon I thought I was well prepared.  For the most part the training went well.  I was confident that I would finish in my goal time.  Well the good news is that I finished – but about an hour longer than I wanted and not feeling any bit as good as I thought I would.  I had to tough it through to finish.  I wasn’t fully prepared for everything that day. 

If you want to complete a marathon there is a wealth of advisors to help you do it.  You can go online and download any number of training plans from Runner’s World Magazine or other sites.  Some will cost you.  Some are free.  You can join a group like Team in Training where you raise money for a certain charity and in turn they provide you with training advice and help you along the way.   You can hire a coach.  But the bottom line is you want to get some good knowledge – some tried and true advice that has worked for other people – hopefully from someone who has run marathons and knows what they are talking about. 

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge (2 Peter 15).

Last time we talked about virtue – making that decision to take our training to the next level with excellence – to put aside the things that would hinder us.  Now with that commitment in mind, we are ready to add knowledge.  Let’s put together the training plan!  Like marathon plans, when it comes to adding to our faith there are a variety of sources.  Christian bookstores are full of books to teach us on just about everything.  We can find many counselors, who can give us good advice on the areas of our faith that we wish to grow.  And I encourage you to take advantage of these sources. 

But…

Our starting point should always be the Bible.  It is the ultimate runner’s manual for the Christian faith.  It is to be the final authority on all that we do.  I like the statement made in Acts 17:11

Now these Jews (the Bereans) were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.

The Bereans were listening to Paul and Silas.  They were receiving instruction from two of the greatest saints of all time!  But they still went back into their Bibles to make sure that what Paul and Silas were saying was consistent with the Word of God. 

Marathon training involves learning how to build endurance and speed.  It involves learning how to pace yourself, and how to refuel during your run.  Hopefully you will learn how to handle running in the cold as well as the heat and to know what to do when those aches and pains start to occur. 

2 Peter 1:3 tells us

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence…

God’s Word is sufficient to give us the knowledge we need to run the Christian race.  We need to tap into it constantly.  We need to weigh all other knowledge we get from other sources (much of which can be very good) against God’s Word.  But we need to intentionally make the effort to add knowledge to our faith.  Our training should prepare us to take our faith to the next level.  It should teach us about the nature of God and how we can trust in Him in the new situations we will encounter.  It should encourage us that when we face tough situations, we will know what to do.

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. (2 Peter 3:18)

So to your faith add ….knowledge…and

Run On!

Taking It To the Next Level

For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue (2 Peter 1:5a)

Deciding to run a marathon is an act of taking your running to the next level.  To run a marathon successfully will mean that you will have to step up your training and run even more than you have been doing already.  You’ll have to be consistent, and you may have to sacrifice in order to find the time to get in that long run, or not eat certain foods to make sure your keep the proper nutritional balance.

So what does that have to do with virtue?  Here are some definitions of virtue from Merriam-Webster – conformity to a standard of right, a particular moral excellence, manly strength or courage, a capacity to act”.

When we decide its time to add to our faith so we can be effective – we are deciding to take our faith to the next level.  It is a decision.  It is a commitment.  It will take sacrifice in order to make it happen.  Virtue (and some translations call this moral excellence) is the first thing we are told to add to our faith.  Why?  Because we must decide that this goal is going to be our focus, that we will be willing to sacrifice other things in order to make it happen.  We must decide that we will “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (Heb 12:1) and that we will focus on that which will get us to the prize. 

Everyone knows that when an athlete goes into training he must give up certain things in order to add what he needs to succeed.  It’s time to put aside the things that will slow us down and keep us from reaching our goal.  That may be different for you than it is for me.  If you’re ready to take it to the next level – ask God what it is you need to set aside and what it is you need to focus on to get there. 

“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?” (Luke 14:28)

Add to your faith – virtue, moral excellence – the desire and willingness to take it to the next level. 

Run On!

And to Your Faith - Add... (Part 2)

2 Peter 1:5-9 has an incredible promise in verse 8 “For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Or in the positive – they make us effective and fruitful.

So what are those qualities, and how do I add them to my training, and ultimately to my life.  If my goal is to finish a marathon, then I must train for a marathon, and train properly.  I must add those qualities that will get me across the finish line.  I don’t want to fall short. 

So let’s take a look:

-      Add to your faith – virtue

-      To virtue – add knowledge

-      To knowledge – add self-control

-      To self-control – add steadfastness

-      To steadfastness – add godliness

-      To godliness – add brotherly affection

-      To brotherly affection – add love

So the questions are “Why these qualities?” and “Why that order?”  That is what we will try to answer using our running analogy as a backdrop.  We will look into what those qualities are and how we might go about adding them. 

So let’s go back to the starting point – “faith”.  Peter assumes we have that as our starting point – much like my training plans assume I’ve been running consistently prior to even begin training for a marathon.  In 2 Peter 1:3 he is writing to us who “share the same precious faith” that was “given to us by Jesus Christ”.  In verse 3 he states that Jesus’ divine power “gives us everything we need for living a godly life.”   Wow! Everything we need – what a starting point!  I’ve never started training for a marathon not believing I couldn’t finish it.  I may have been overconfident – but I knew I could accomplish it – with training. 

So let’s add to our faith – to our foundation – those qualities that will get us to the finish line – knowing that we have through Christ all that we need to be successful.

 

Run On!

And to Your Faith - Add...

And to your faith – add…

 There are lots of training plans you can follow if you wish to run a marathon.  Most of them take between 16 and 20 weeks and will include a combination of easy runs, speed workouts, and long runs.  The differences in plans are based on you starting shape and you finish goal.  But all of them start with one big assumption – that you have already been running.  The plan I’ve used most often assumes that you have already been running 25 miles a week and can run a long run of at least 8 miles.  Only at that point should you start to train to go 26.2 miles. 

Like running, I try to look for training plans that will prepare me to run the “Christian” race.  One thing I’ve noticed is that God, when He does a great work, does not typically follow a pattern.  That Jericho thing, when the army marched around the city and blew trumpets, was a one-time deal.   So was the burning bush and the talking donkey.  God doesn’t want us to rely on special phenomenon, but on Him.  But when I see a formula on how to train as a Christian, I want to latch on to it.  One such formula came to mind in 2 Peter 1:

⁵ For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, ⁶ and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, ⁷ and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. ⁸ For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Peter talks about qualities we should be developing in order to be effective and fruitful in our Christian lives.  But it, like our 25 mile per week running base, also has an assumption – our faith.  Peter tells us to add or supplement our faith. 

So as we begin to train for the Christian life – our foundation has to be our faith.

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1

We need to start with a heart given to God through His Son, Jesus Christ.  We need to understand salvation, repentance, and forgiveness through Jesus.  And then we can add to that those qualities that will make us effective.

Over the course of the next several blogs we will look at adding these qualities to our faith – much like a runner in training who is adding to his running base abilities that will help him run faster and farther.  After that we will turn our focus to the race itself as we strive to reach the Finish Line for which God has called us to achieve.

Until then – run on!

Define Your Finish Line!

When I finished my first marathon I vowed never to run another again.  It was much harder than I expected and my training was less than sufficient.  I did finish, but it took much longer and I felt much worse than I than I thought it should, than I thought it should, than I thought it should.  “Never again!”

Until about 2 weeks later.

Memories of pain are short lived compared to the memories of accomplishment and the thoughts of what you really think you can do if you just prepare for it properly.  I had made it through 26.2 miles.  I knew I could do it and I believed I could do it faster.

And I did – 8 more times.

I’ve heard it asked – what’s the difference between a runner and a jogger.  The answer I like the most is – “a race application”.  When you sign up for a race, whether it is a 5K or a 50 miler (now that’s just crazy), you have committed yourself.  You have laid out cash to participate and now have an end goal, a finish line, in mind.  It’s time to get serious and prepare.

 

I love the Rocky films (with the exception of Rocky 5).  I love that they spend as much time showing Rocky’s training as they do the actual fight.  How we end up at the Finish Line will be a product of how well we trained to get there.  And that training takes place before we ever get to the Starting Line.

So what is your Finish Line?  What do you want to accomplish?  Right now I am signed up to run a half marathon in the spring.  I have a training plan prepared to help me get ready and meet my time goal.  I start following it this week.  Your finish line may not be a running race – maybe it’s a new ministry, or a new skill you want to develop.  Maybe the plan you need to stick to deals with losing wait, or staying on a budget.  Maybe there is someone you’ve wanted to share the Gospel of Christ with.  It starts with a race application (define your Finish Line) followed by the appropriate training.  Then it’s time to reach the Starting Line and let your training carry you to the finish.
 
Next time I'll talk about the "Training Plan".  But first you need to know what you want to train for.  So whether it’s is a 5K or a marathon, or assisting in the church kids program or leading an adult small group, define your finish line and then put a plan together to get there.

Run On!

Look Mommy! Daddy's wearing tights!

Look mommy!  Daddy’s wearing tights!

I’ve spent a good deal of my life working in and around Wright Patterson Air Force Base.  I first arrived there in 1989 and at that time I was not a runner.  Loop Road in the Area B section of the base has a 1 mile stretch that rises about 200 feet in elevation.  During the day you will almost always find someone running that stretch,  I would pass this section on my way out to lunch, usually to one of my favorite fast food places and think how crazy those runners were, especially when they were not only running the uphill stretch, but also in the wind, cold, rain, or snow.  Why would anyone want to subject themselves to that – that’s just weird? 

Fast forward about 10 years and that became me.  And more recently after coming home from a long run in the cold, wind, and snow my daughter remarked “Look mommy!  Daddy’s wearing tights!”  I’ll spare you the picture (you’re welcome!) but I would rather run outside than run on a treadmill or even worse, not run at all.  And I will dress accordingly. 

 

I love the title to Craig Groeschel’s book “Weird: Because Normal Isn’t Working”   Weird is going out for a run on a snowy day.  Weird is waking up before 5 AM each more and reading the Bible, spending time in prayer, and maybe even get in a run before most people reach to hit the snooze bar for the first time to get 10 more minutes of sleep.  Weird is adopting three kids from a foreign country in addition to the two you already have (and some of you are weirder than me!)  Weird is giving money to support the work of God instead of upgrading you house or vehicle.  Weird, not just for the sake of being weird – but to accomplish the work of God in my life. 

 Normal – is sleeping in, getting caught up in the things of the world – many (not-all) of which keep us from God’s true desires for us, and realizing that when we talk about being too busy to so certain things it’s God that has gotten left out. 

Last week I blogged about the Finish Line.  The journey to the finish line begins with some decisions   “What do I want to accomplish?”, “Will I do what it takes to get there?”, and “Am I willing to be weird if that is what it takes?” 

We all will race towards many finish lines in our lives before we reach the final finish line.  We need to decide which races to enter and which ones to pass up.  Each decision hopefully will be made with the final finish line in mind - the one which we hope to hear the words from the race director “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Some of you reading this are weirder than me.  You’ve given your lives to support the work of God – taking less pay and in some cases moving your family to a foreign country to do so.  I praise God for you! 

I would love some feedback – what are you doing that is Weird? Or what are you going to start doing that is weird to help you achieve your God ordained finish line?

Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?  For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you,  saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’

Luke 14:28-30

 

Run On!

 

The Finish Line!

It main seem strange to start out the new year focusing on the finish line.  However, I would suppose that most (if not all) runners don’t train to reach the starting line – they train to reach the finish line.  And many who get to the starting line will never reach the finish line.

The next few weeks will prove my point.  Many, armed with new year’s resolve, have been heading to the gym for the first time in almost a year.  They will work out with earnest, some sporting fancy new gym wear obtained at Christmas.  And soon, they will be gone – back to their old routines. 

Why?  Because making it to the starting line is easy.  Getting to the finish line, well that’s another matter altogether.

Whenever I run a marathon I like to familiarize myself with the course ahead of time.  I don’t want to be surprised by a hill midway.  I want to be mentally prepared for it.  I want to make sure I’ve trained with that hill in mind.  I want to be ready.  I want to know what the last .2 miles looks like so I can envision myself there – running (hopefully) past the crowd (that I hope is still there) toward the finish.

I also know that at the end of the race there awaits a prize - a medal that signifies my accomplishment.  Everyone gets a t-shirt at the start – but only those who finish get the medal.  I don’t train for the t-shirt, I train for the medal.

One of Steven Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is to begin with the end in mind.  Focus on the finish line – train to reach the finish line.  To do this we must know where the finish line is and what it will take to get there.

 So during this year, this blog is going to focus on the finish line.  As we race toward the prize, we will focus on the prize and what it takes to get there. 

So you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.  (1 Corinthians 9:24)

So where do we start?   That’s a matter of another blog entry.  Until then…

Run On!