“…Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus… so that you will not grow weary and lose heart”. Hebrews 12:1b-3
As my own parents have aged, I have noticed that many of our phone conversations seem to focus on deaths and friends’ funeral schedules. This has got me thinking.
Between us, my husband and I have been involved in full time ministry as our vocation for the last 80 years, all of it with the same organization! Needless to say as we aged, we have talked a lot about how to finish well. It seems that there are not a lot of role models of people who have indeed fought the good fight and finished well. Instead, pride enters in, entitlement takes over, and perspective is lost. Weariness becomes the all-encompassing word of the day.
As we get older, we have less energy and can't have quite as many balls in the air without dropping them! And so we need to take time to be still and ask the questions that need to be asked.
How do we have maximum impact in the years that God gives us, within the parameters and limitations that our physical bodies place on us?
How do we fight the good fight so that we do we not grow weary and lose heart?
What is it that we want to give our limited energy to?
These are the thoughts that are running through my mind because at the end of my days, I want to hear, 'Well done, thou good and faithful servant.'
Whether you’re graduating or retiring, what is keeping you from running the race with endurance today? Are there circumstances that you are facing that take your eyes off Jesus?
Lord, I want to run the race with endurance and finish well. Help me to keep my eyes fixed on Jesus regardless of the challenges I face or circumstances I find myself in. Instead may I continue to fight the good fight and at the end of my days hear those words I long to hear, ‘Well done, thou good and faithful servant’.
Take action
Take some time today to refocus. Are you having a maximum impact for the Kingdom? What needs to change for that to happen?
Read: The Memory You Leave Behind