A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Daily
Encouragement on
Monday, May 6,
2019
Coach
Bill's metal track and field figures
"Running The Race Set
Before Us"
Message
summary:
The Christian race
begins when we
accept Christ and
continues until we
finish the race at
either the time of
our death or when He
returns for His
church. So let us
bravely run the race
till we see
Christ!
Listen to our
message on your
audio player.
"I run in the path of Your commands" (Psalm 119:32). "They shall run and not be weary" (Isaiah 40:31). "Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1).
"I run in the path of Your commands" (Psalm 119:32). "They shall run and not be weary" (Isaiah 40:31). "Let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1).
Last
week we visited
our friends, Bill
and Patty Preston,
whom we first met
ten years ago when
they lived in New
Jersey. Several
years ago they
moved to rural
Pennsylvania near
Chambersburg. For
over 50 years Bill
served as a track
and field coach in
high school and
college.
I recall the esteem I had for coaches in my various athletic endeavors of youth who often went by the one word moniker "Coach" and that's what I prefer to call Bill.
Coach is now 81 but remains very athletic. In his home he showed me a collection of metal stick figures representing various track and field positions (see photo above). As we looked them over I picked them up, and recalling my high school track and field participation, identified each one. Then an idea for a Daily Encouragement series came to mind.
In several places the Bible describes the Christian life as running a race. The race most analogous to the Christian life is the marathon which is run over a very specific course, usually on a road, comprising 26 miles and 385 yards. The event was instituted in commemoration of the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon (the namesake of the race), to Athens.
The marathon was one of the original modern Olympic events in 1896, though the distance did not become standardized until 1921. More than 500 marathons are held throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes. The Boston Marathon has some 30,000 participants and some 1,000,000 people will line the course cheering on the runners, according to the Boston Athletic Association. We've been there twice, once at the finish line and once at Heartbreak Hill.
This week we want to draw some spiritual lessons from the race. Most of our references will be from the New Testament but today's first reference is a gem found in the longest chapter in the entire Bible, Psalm 119!
I am blessed by the phrase "I run in the path of Your commands". God, through His Word, has provided the life time course for us. His commands are markers along the way keeping us on track. Failure to keep His commands will most certainly get us off course.
A current example of one who ran in the path of God's commands from the time of his youth until the day God called him home last Thursday, May 2, is 89 year old Bible Teacher, Commentator, and Author of 150 books, Warren W. Wiersbe. His example, his wisdom and his teaching left an indelible mark on countless pastors, Christian leaders and laypersons alike. Since archiving the messages online in 2005 we have referred to Warren Wiersbe 115 times. He was not just a student and teacher of God's Word, he lived according to God's commands. He didn't try to explain them in a way that sought to please itchy ears nor did he seek to align them with current philosophies of our day that contradict Scripture. Instead he ran in the path of God's commands to his final breath.
In Hebrews we read that we are to "run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1). For every believer, the Christian race begins when we accept Christ and continues till we finish the race at either the time of our death, such as Wiersbe, or when Jesus returns for His church. So let us bravely run the race till we see Christ!
I recall the esteem I had for coaches in my various athletic endeavors of youth who often went by the one word moniker "Coach" and that's what I prefer to call Bill.
Coach is now 81 but remains very athletic. In his home he showed me a collection of metal stick figures representing various track and field positions (see photo above). As we looked them over I picked them up, and recalling my high school track and field participation, identified each one. Then an idea for a Daily Encouragement series came to mind.
In several places the Bible describes the Christian life as running a race. The race most analogous to the Christian life is the marathon which is run over a very specific course, usually on a road, comprising 26 miles and 385 yards. The event was instituted in commemoration of the fabled run of the Greek soldier Pheidippides, a messenger from the Battle of Marathon (the namesake of the race), to Athens.
The marathon was one of the original modern Olympic events in 1896, though the distance did not become standardized until 1921. More than 500 marathons are held throughout the world each year, with the vast majority of competitors being recreational athletes. The Boston Marathon has some 30,000 participants and some 1,000,000 people will line the course cheering on the runners, according to the Boston Athletic Association. We've been there twice, once at the finish line and once at Heartbreak Hill.
This week we want to draw some spiritual lessons from the race. Most of our references will be from the New Testament but today's first reference is a gem found in the longest chapter in the entire Bible, Psalm 119!
I am blessed by the phrase "I run in the path of Your commands". God, through His Word, has provided the life time course for us. His commands are markers along the way keeping us on track. Failure to keep His commands will most certainly get us off course.
A current example of one who ran in the path of God's commands from the time of his youth until the day God called him home last Thursday, May 2, is 89 year old Bible Teacher, Commentator, and Author of 150 books, Warren W. Wiersbe. His example, his wisdom and his teaching left an indelible mark on countless pastors, Christian leaders and laypersons alike. Since archiving the messages online in 2005 we have referred to Warren Wiersbe 115 times. He was not just a student and teacher of God's Word, he lived according to God's commands. He didn't try to explain them in a way that sought to please itchy ears nor did he seek to align them with current philosophies of our day that contradict Scripture. Instead he ran in the path of God's commands to his final breath.
In Hebrews we read that we are to "run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1). For every believer, the Christian race begins when we accept Christ and continues till we finish the race at either the time of our death, such as Wiersbe, or when Jesus returns for His church. So let us bravely run the race till we see Christ!
It
will be worth it
all when we see
Jesus!
Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ.
One glimpse of His dear face, all sorrow will erase.
So, bravely run the race till we see Christ.
Life’s trials will seem so small when we see Christ.
One glimpse of His dear face, all sorrow will erase.
So, bravely run the race till we see Christ.
Be
encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father,
we look to You
for strength
and guidance
on our life's
race. Your
commands teach
us the way we
are to walk
and the way we
are to respond
to the bumps
and potholes
we encounter
on the
journey. We
want to run in
the path of
Your commands,
because that
is where You
teach us how
to follow Your
decrees. You
cheer us on by
Christ's
example and by
the power of
the indwelling
Holy Spirit
that sustains
us in our
struggle
against sin.
Keep us
faithful to
the end, for
the end is
only the
beginning. We
seek to run
the race
before us,
strong and
brave to face
the foe,
looking only
unto Jesus as
we onward go.
Amen.This week our series will be on lessons from life's race:
Monday: "Running The Race Set Before Us"
Tuesday: "The Start"
Wednesday: "The Hurdles"
Thursday: "The Relay"
Friday: "The Finish"
Today
we will share
a few more
photos from
our visit to
Franklin
County last
week.
Hitting
this mailbox
post will do
some serious
damage to you
vehicle!
Along
Rt 30 near
Fayetteville
we passed Mr.
Ed's
Elephant
Museum and
Candy
Emporium!
Thaddeus
Stevens
Blacksmith
Shop, Franklin
County, PA.
The Thaddeus
Stevens
College of
Technology
here in
Lancaster is
named for him.
The
former Mont
Alto Episcopal
Chapel is now
part of the
Penn State
Mont Alto
campus. John
Brown was said
to have
preached here
in the weeks
before his
raid at
Harper's
Ferry.
Today's
Suggested
Music and
Supplemental Resources
"It Will Be
Worth It All" Video
Local congregation sung the
way we would have some 40
years ago and some still do.
This song has the line, "so
bravely run the race".
"Grace on Top of Grace" Video Fellowship Creative
"Worth It
All" Video
The Brooklyn Tabernacle
Choir
Honoring a
Bible study mentor:Wiersbe has long
been a favorite author of
Stephen's and mine. Many
times we've quoted him on
these posts and the "Be"
series really got us hooked
on his style of writing
along with the biblical
depth of his words. A simple
quote that I read many years
ago I have often repeated
either in our writings or to
one undergoing trial is,
"Faith that cannot be tested
is faith that cannot be
trusted" attempting to
assure the individual that
"testing" is not a sign of
one's weakness or
wrongdoing, it's a
measurable marker of one's
faith and helps to uphold
and strengthen it. We saw
the Wiersbes a couple of
times and found them to be
very approachable.
Stephen and I once
taught a Bible Study "Being
a Child of God" which did
not include a study guide so
I write a study guide for
each lesson. I sent him a
completed copy of all the
lessons, hoping for his
blessings that I had
presented his materials and
asked questions properly
aligned with his teachings.
I was so pleased to receive
a very nice handwritten note
from him, approving and
affirming my efforts. He
indicated that he probably
should have written a study
guide and even expressed
appreciation that I had done
so. He also indicated that
the editor would be changing
the name of the book on a
future revision though I
found this one on Amazon.
Once again, I was blessed by
this remarkable teacher and
his kind words to a much
less learned and skilled
Bible teacher.
Wiersbe's
thoughts regarding his
skill as a
Theologian/Bible
teacher/Author: "Writing to me is
a ministry. I’m not an
athlete, I’m not a mechanic.
I can’t do so many of the
things that successful men
can do. But I can read and
study and think and teach.
This is a beautiful,
wonderful gift from God. All
I’m doing is using what He’s
given to me to teach people,
and to give glory to the
Lord Jesus Christ."
Finally
today:
Following a meal together
at the Crackerbarrel in
Chambersburg Bill had a
doctor's appointment and
Patty went with him. Here's
a note we received from
her:
Something
funny happened and I just
have to share it with you. I
had never been to this
doctor with him but because
we were so close I went with
him and took along a book to
read. I was sitting in the
waiting room, reading my
book, and the doctor opened
the door from the treatment
area and stood there looking
at me. He was holding up the
sweater that Bill had been
wearing, but Bill was not in
it. He asked me if I
recognized it. I said that
it was the sweater that Bill
had been wearing when he
came in. What had happened
to Bill? I asked why he was
holding it. My first thought
was that Bill had died and
the doctor was returning his
sweater to me and I said
that to the doctor. Or, had
he gotten sick and removed
the sweater so I could wash
it? I had no idea why the
doctor was holding his
sweater. If you recall, it
was a crew neck sweater with
rather bold red and tan
stripes. The doctor said
that he told Bill several
times how how much he liked
the sweater. It reminded him
of his college days. Bill
removed the sweater and
handed it to the doctor.
Bill insisted that he take
it since he liked it so
much. So, Bill hadn't given
him the "shirt off his back"
but he had given him his
sweater. I told Bill later
that I wondered if the
Rapture had occurred and I
had been left behind!
The doctor sent
Patty a photo of him wearing
the sweater and informed her
it made him feel young
again!
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Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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