Short Races

Louis Pasteur said, “Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal. My strength lies solely in my tenacity.” Perseverance is a key quality for a Christian. I believe that Christians ought to persevere … stick with it … never give up … and when they fall, get right back up on their feet and get right back on that Christian path. Hebrews 12:1 says, “…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” You and I both have sometimes wanted to give up on this Christian race. Life’s struggles have made everything difficult. We have prayed, and read your Bible, and attended church - but we still struggle with unbelief, doubt, temptation, sin. Things haven’t gone the way we had hoped they would. Sometimes we blame God as if we have kept our part of the bargain, why hasn’t He? What if Jesus had felt this way? Do you think he would have carried his cross all the way to Calvary? Do you think he would have allowed wicked men to slay him the way they did? No, Jesus never gave up. He had tremendous perseverance. Walter Elliott was right when he wrote, “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another.” We must not become discouraged by looking at the long race of life. Just concern yourself with today. Tomorrow you can worry about tomorrow. You’ll know what to do then.