Keep going

A key way to help us persevere is to be in a community

I remember my wife’s first half marathon as if it were yesterday.

The Birmingham streets were packed with well-wishers. A friend and I committed to run alongside her, cheering, encouraging, and trying to be helpful. But, at 18 km, I could tell something was wrong, I could tell she was hitting “the wall” — the moment when runners feel they cannot go on.

She shouted for us to run on without her, but, in a gracious, loving way, we shouted, “NO! You will finish!,” we proceeded to encourage her some more. Frustration may have flashed across her face for a moment, but the words seemed to help her turn the corner.

The crowd called out, applauding the runners along the last

4 km until the finish line was in sight. She ran on, in pain and grateful for her two encouragers, who let her run ahead over the finish line.

The sound of “We Are the Champions” booming out as she was greeted with a silver space blanket, a banana, and a shiny medal.

Exhilaration overtook exhaustion as she thanked us for our encouragement to carry on. I know that sometimes perseverance does not look shiny and polished with our cheerleaders carrying us along the way.

Sometimes perseverance looks like Jacob wrestling in the dark with a God we cannot see, holding fast, refusing to let go.

A key way to help us persevere is to be in a community; it is essential to join with others walking the same path, especially as we face challenges.

I’m passionate about our church community being together; I miss it. The pandemic has prevented gatherings as we have known them for now, but I’m thankful for technology, for drive-in services, and a massive dose of creative wisdom that has enabled gatherings of a new kind.

God has a unique purpose for each of our lives. God planned when in history each of us would be born, as well as where we would be born.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10)

The Apostle Paul often writes about races and encourages us to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1).

The power of prayer is the power to carry on. It doesn’t always change your circumstances, but it gives you the strength to walk (or run…) through them.

Can I encourage you to be a cheerleader in our community and speak words that inspire? Let’s keep going.

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