Galatians 6 :19 "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at just the right time we shall reap a harvest, if we do not give up."
When I turned 40, I celebrated five years of being cancer-free by entering the Seal Beach Triathlon. I was not (am not) a highly competitive athlete, but I had been running and biking regularly, and I swam the distance between the jetty and the pier a couple of times to make sure I could do it. Race day came and I plunged into the ocean, being pummeled by the elbows and feet of 600 other competitors. When I finally emerged from the waves, there wasn't much of a crowd...just me and a dozen or so others. I transitioned to the bike for a 20K ride, passed a few people, and got to the starting line for the 10K run. Dismounting from the bike, I nearly collapsed - my legs felt like spaghetti. It took everything in me to put one foot in front of the other, but I finally settled into a pace that I felt I could maintain. Eventually (2 hrs. 20 min.) I crossed the finish line, falling into the arms of my wife. What kept me going? Why didn't I just quit? Two things: My wife was cheering me on and I wanted her to be proud of me; I had committed to do this and I wanted to prove to myself that I could.
These days, when occasionally I get really tired, and nothing I do seems to make a difference, it is easy to become discouraged, to want to "throw in the towel". God says to "hang in there", not lose my grip, persist in doing good even when I don't see results. At just the right time, He will lift us up (see 1 Pet 5:6), we will reap a harvest, we'll see what He has been doing through us all along (even when we didn't think anything was happening). Think about it...Jesus hung in there (literally) for us. I want to do the same for Him; I want to make Him proud.
Lord, I know You see the end from the beginning. You know what You are accomplishing in and through me, even when I see no results. Please help me to faithfully trust You today.
No comments:
Post a Comment