1 Corinthians 9:24-27 BSB ~ “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to take the prize. [25] Everyone who competes in the games trains with strict discipline. They do it for a crown that is perishable, but we do it for a crown that is imperishable. [26] Therefore I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight like I am beating the air. [27] No, I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.”
To be a faithful that Christian in this life, it’s going to take work, self-denial, and self-discipline. Today, as you start out on your race, remember what you are running for, you are running toward your heavenly reward. I absolutely love how Paul described this scripture. He told the believers to be like an athlete! Determined, dedicated and disciplined! This doesn’t mean that you are to be running against anyone else, you just need to focus on your race!
Picture this, the Olympic Games! Athletes from all over the world come to win the honor according to their discipline! They compete to win an award from man, and they believe that it’s the highest honor that one can achieve! In order to get to the games, they must train for ten months prior to the games, they are athletes in training, and they must deny themselves pleasures in order to prepare and be in top condition for the competition. As a believer you should be reaching towards the reward of God’s kingdom and not the award of man! Your gift is priceless!
As an athlete, you have to practice being discipline, you can’t do something one day and be done you have to rain diligently each and every single day for your spiritual progress depends upon it. You must do the same thing every day, prayer, Bible study, and worship will equip you to run with vigor and stamina! Do you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the man-made prize? So run to win! Even though all of them have been disciplined in their craft, they compete with one purpose in mind, to win a prize that will fade and rot! But not you, you run your race for an eternal prize, one that can only come from God and one that will never fade nor rot!
As a believer you should be willing to do whatever God says to do! You have to practice, practice, practice! As a true believer you must make the right choices between right and wrong. And at times you must even give up something good in order to do what God wants. Remember you want a God thing not a good thing, (put your agenda to the side and embracing God’s Plan!) Obeying God is easy until He tells you to let go of something you want to keep!
Ask yourself this question, “who am I?” For your character is not who you say you are, it’s who you really are! You may fool some of the people sometimes, but you can’t fool God at no time. You are your character, either you have it, or you don’t, for this is what determines how much discipline you have and how much you can deny your flesh! For without a goal, discipline is nothing but punishment, but with the goal of pleasing God, denying yourself is nothing compared to the eternal reward that you will receive from God!
For your end goal is to bring others to Jesus Christ, and if you have not practiced self control and learned how to deny your own flesh, you surely won’t be able to help anyone else in this area, Galatians 5:18-23! You see all of us are running a race towards an eternal prize and the prize is not dependent on how you run the race, but on how you run for God, because you see, the prize is already being established, you just have to be mindful of the prize and live for God with as much focus and enthusiasm as did the a runners at their games.
These athletes give up everything in order to win, to emerge as victors! For they know that in the end, there can only be one winner. But thanks be unto God, this rule does not apply to you! Each one of you gets to run your race in your lane with a future hope of an eternal reward from God! So put forth your greatest effort during this contest and set everything else in order to win the prize! Your home in eternity! This prize is so worth the race! And guess what you winning has nothing to do with someone else winning! God got this!
Do you remember when self-help books came out? There was one for everything! Fulfillment, Freedom, Satisfaction, and Awareness, but there were very if any on Discipline! I wonder why? It is because self-discipline requires you to look at you and be honest with the person who is starring back at you! You had to look your strengths and weaknesses, and vice versa. It means that you have to learn the art of No! No to self, No to your flesh and your feelings, No to others that want to lead you away from Jesus! For when you are weak, you are strong, for God’s grace is sufficient! 2 Corinthians 12:9! Remember from yesterday, God is a Sustainer!
Let’s Pray:
Father, thank You! Thank You for building up my character in You! Thank You for the vigor and stamina to run my race and to run it with You in mind. Father, thank You for making me in Your image and for protecting and persevering me through what I have endured, thank You for directing me and teaching me how to handle what I go through, with my character intact! Father, You are backbone of my success and I’m grateful to You for everything! Father, I’m blessing Your Name on my good days and on my challenging days, for I know that this too is a part of my race! Father I Thank You for showing me that nothing I’ve been through was wasted. I Thank You that You used everything to get me right here to this place with You. I Thank You for my waiting period and growing me in every area of my life that I may run my race and win my reward from You. Thank You for pouring out Your love on me. Father, everything that I do is for You and Your Glory and today I choose to run my race with Heaven on my mind, my eternal prize! In the Name of Jesus Christ! Amen!
Blessings…
Love, Minister Jean