Running the walk
I shall begin the first post here by submitting to you that the life as a
Christian can be likened somewhat to a race ... which is probably not
entirely new information anyway ... i first thought of a marathon
actually *i was on a run at the time ya =p* but finally felt that the steeplechase race
is probably slightly more illustrative *maybe the recent Beijing Olympics had a part to
play in all this =)* so here I'll expound some thoughts on that ....
1) in this race, we're not umpires/spectators/timekeepers ... we're actually the athletes and so, we are participants in the race; not watching from the sidelines .... Christianity shouldn't be a 'watch the world go by' activity ...
2) a race can be 'completed' in many ways --- one can fall out at the beginning or halfway, or ideally finish it by running past the finishing line ... if we liken the finishing line to be something like fulfilling God's purpose for our short time on this earth, or the Judgement .... the same few scenarios are applicable .... do we, seeing that the race is a long, arduous one, give up without even starting or falter halfway?
3) athletes don't simply run a race occasionally ... they train and train and train ... and train even more .... Christianity shouldn't be limited to weekends only, or casual convenient times ....
4) gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded to the top few who complete a race most excellently .... God wants all of us to complete the race well (which is probably akin to everyone getting at least a bronze medal), there are more rewards (silver, gold) for those who do it better ... *more on that later =p*
5) athletes are more concerned (or at least likely to be in most cases) with the outcome of the race; in other words how well they run the race ... the income from endorsements, prize money etc, is mostly secondary .... such focus is surely needed in this materialistic day and age ...
6) there are different levels of competition ... be it nationals, regionals or Olympics .... athletes compete at the appropriate levels before moving on to tougher competitions .... similarly, we have unique, probably seemingly smallish, starting phases in the Christian walk ... as we remain faithful in these smaller issues, we can then move onwards ....it would be quite rare for one to immediately be successful at the big stuff without having first tackled the smaller ones!
7) there are ups and downs in a race .... (hence the steeplechase illustration ha! =p like he's finally talking about it only at point 7 right heh) the athletes have to jump over hurdles and land in ditches of waters along the course of the race .... yet again, indicative of the many peaks and troughs experiences in the Christian walk ...
8) no cheating is tolerated from the athletes! such individuals are banned and humiliated ... needless to say, there is only the straight and narrow path in the Christian walk; the broad, easy way would be pointless since one wouldn't be completing the race appropriately ....
having said all that, there are some differences .... there isn't a need to 'do better' than other people running the race hence the Christian walk isn't really a race/competition with others (there is in fact some degree of cooperation) but is more personal, with each of us being accountable for what we do in our personal experiences .... also, we are all expected to complete this race ... any deviance would be tantamount to failure, with devastating consequences ... at the same time, not everyone is 'built' like an athlete nor be able to find within us the strength to complete such a gruelling event and yet, we, as Christians, are impelled to finish this race well ...
as such the race/steeplechase example alone isn't entirely accurate enough to depict the whole story .... since it isn't 'that' easy to complete, God has allowed us to be yoked (Matt 11:29-30) with Him .... in so doing, this race becomes somewhat like a relay and an easier course (though still by no means easy!) ...
a recent message in church had this imho very meaningful phrase -- 'abandonment with expectation', indicative of the need to abandon our carnal mindsets and seek out God's presence, following His ways, focussing on things that matter in our walk and expecting more (not referring to income! =P) .... indeed, this is similar to a professional athlete who trains for his/her race only, with no worry about daily necessities ... of course in our flawed world system, not all professional athletes get appropriate remuneration, but you can see the parallel here...
so with that, i shall end this rather lengthy (and fairly disjointed =P) first post ... i'm personally by no means doing everything expected of a good 'athlete' but i hope this has been a useful read for you ...
1) in this race, we're not umpires/spectators/timekeepers ... we're actually the athletes and so, we are participants in the race; not watching from the sidelines .... Christianity shouldn't be a 'watch the world go by' activity ...
2) a race can be 'completed' in many ways --- one can fall out at the beginning or halfway, or ideally finish it by running past the finishing line ... if we liken the finishing line to be something like fulfilling God's purpose for our short time on this earth, or the Judgement .... the same few scenarios are applicable .... do we, seeing that the race is a long, arduous one, give up without even starting or falter halfway?
3) athletes don't simply run a race occasionally ... they train and train and train ... and train even more .... Christianity shouldn't be limited to weekends only, or casual convenient times ....
4) gold, silver and bronze medals are awarded to the top few who complete a race most excellently .... God wants all of us to complete the race well (which is probably akin to everyone getting at least a bronze medal), there are more rewards (silver, gold) for those who do it better ... *more on that later =p*
5) athletes are more concerned (or at least likely to be in most cases) with the outcome of the race; in other words how well they run the race ... the income from endorsements, prize money etc, is mostly secondary .... such focus is surely needed in this materialistic day and age ...
6) there are different levels of competition ... be it nationals, regionals or Olympics .... athletes compete at the appropriate levels before moving on to tougher competitions .... similarly, we have unique, probably seemingly smallish, starting phases in the Christian walk ... as we remain faithful in these smaller issues, we can then move onwards ....it would be quite rare for one to immediately be successful at the big stuff without having first tackled the smaller ones!
7) there are ups and downs in a race .... (hence the steeplechase illustration ha! =p like he's finally talking about it only at point 7 right heh) the athletes have to jump over hurdles and land in ditches of waters along the course of the race .... yet again, indicative of the many peaks and troughs experiences in the Christian walk ...
8) no cheating is tolerated from the athletes! such individuals are banned and humiliated ... needless to say, there is only the straight and narrow path in the Christian walk; the broad, easy way would be pointless since one wouldn't be completing the race appropriately ....
having said all that, there are some differences .... there isn't a need to 'do better' than other people running the race hence the Christian walk isn't really a race/competition with others (there is in fact some degree of cooperation) but is more personal, with each of us being accountable for what we do in our personal experiences .... also, we are all expected to complete this race ... any deviance would be tantamount to failure, with devastating consequences ... at the same time, not everyone is 'built' like an athlete nor be able to find within us the strength to complete such a gruelling event and yet, we, as Christians, are impelled to finish this race well ...
as such the race/steeplechase example alone isn't entirely accurate enough to depict the whole story .... since it isn't 'that' easy to complete, God has allowed us to be yoked (Matt 11:29-30) with Him .... in so doing, this race becomes somewhat like a relay and an easier course (though still by no means easy!) ...
a recent message in church had this imho very meaningful phrase -- 'abandonment with expectation', indicative of the need to abandon our carnal mindsets and seek out God's presence, following His ways, focussing on things that matter in our walk and expecting more (not referring to income! =P) .... indeed, this is similar to a professional athlete who trains for his/her race only, with no worry about daily necessities ... of course in our flawed world system, not all professional athletes get appropriate remuneration, but you can see the parallel here...
so with that, i shall end this rather lengthy (and fairly disjointed =P) first post ... i'm personally by no means doing everything expected of a good 'athlete' but i hope this has been a useful read for you ...
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