This morning, as I was scrolling through "my usual a.m. phone check-in with the world after waking up"... email, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc, etc... I saw this email!
I knew that the lottery was drawing today for the Marine Corps Marathon but I didn't realize it would be that early!
But... I won the participant lottery and made it into the Marine Corps Marathon on October 26th!
Yesterday I hung my shadow boxes of previous marathons and half-marathons that I've done... Akron 1/2 (2010), Flying Pig 1/2 (2011), Air Force full (2011), Cap City 1/2 (2012) and Chicago full (2012). This morning as I was looking at the wall and imagining the shadow box that will soon hang there with my Marine Corps Marathon medal, I found myself thinking about the prize.
This verse popped to mind:
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
The thing that I love about having a marathon on my schedule, I know what I need to do... it brings discipline into my life (running, diet, sleeping, etc). I know what the training looks like. I know what the mileage looks like. I know what it feels like to complete it.
When I don't have a marathon or a race on my calendar, I find myself lazy with my training. I run what I want... when I want... how I want... But I don't accomplish anything. I don't get anywhere.
I think it's easy to end up in the same spot in our spiritual lives. When we don't have our eyes on the "prize" spiritually... when we do what we want... pray when we want... read when we want... without any discipline... we don't get anywhere. We don't accomplish anything.
Paul says: Let's run in such a way to get the prize!
What are you running for spiritually??
I know that running a marathon will leave me with an awesome medal, some memorabilia, some photos and a great memory. What will your spiritual marathon leave you with? And are you running so as to get that stuff? Are you "running" with discipline?
Father: Help me to discipline myself spiritually as I discipline myself physically!
JC
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