Run At Your Own Pace
1 Corinthians 9:24 (King James Version)
By Carolyn Bridges
Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
Have you ever run in a race? I ran a community race once and it taught me a good lesson. First of all one must train or prepare to run the race and to complete the race. If you have not properly trained, then you can forget it.
Once I was training with a partner who insisted that I keep up with her. However, I insisted on keeping my normal pace—steady as she goes. We ran in a neighborhood that had lots of hills, and off we went. We started out together, then she slowly left me in the dust. I just kept my pace, strong and steady. We both knew there was a hill up ahead that was difficult to go up, so I was preparing to get to the top and to the finish line.
Well, by the time I got to the hill, I could see my partner afar off walking at the half-way point up the hill. I kept my pace, strong and steady. I “slowly” (as she thought) passed her as she stopped to catch her breath. I reached the finish line, and accomplished my goal. It was a great victory for me, because it was a distance I had never run before. But with proper training and determination, I stayed steady and finished. I was ready for the big race.
On race day, I completed the race at a slightly faster pace than my training pace. My partner didn’t make it to the race.
In the body of Christ, we are all in a race. But we are not racing against each other. My victory was not in passing my partner; my victory was in finishing the race. I would have been happier if we both finished. The point is that you have to run at a pace that will not cause you to fizzle out at some of the most crucial times in your life. Certain challenges require that you have stored up energy to overcome, while others require not much effort at all. You must remember to keep a steady pace. Don’t look at someone and try to run at their pace. Keep your own pace, so that at the finish line, you can hear from our Lord, well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of thy Lord.