Running the Good Race

Enduring the Struggle…

It was almost 7pm in Mexico City, 1968. One hour earlier the winners of the 26-mile Olympic marathon had crossed the finish line. It had been a grueling hot day and the high altitude affected all the athletes. The sky was darkening and most of the stadium was empty. As the last few spectators were preparing to leave, police sirens and flashing lights caught their attention. A lone runner, wearing the colors of Tanzania had just emerged through the stadium gate. Limping, with his leg bandaged he found the last of his endurance to step up his pace and finish the race. His name was John Stephen Akhwari."

Afterwards it was written, “Today we have seen a young African runner who symbolizes the finest of the human spirit. A performance that gives true dignity to sport, a performance that lifts sport out of the category of grown men playing at games, a performance that gives meaning to courage, all honor to John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania.”

Perhaps the words of John Stephen Akhwari represent all that is good and right in the human spirit. When asked why he did not quit he said simply,

"My country didn't send me 5,000 miles to start the race.

They sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race."

To me this story is the epitome of what it means to persevere in the face of overwhelming circumstances. In our Christian walk, we will find ourselves at times facing life’s struggles and feel ill equipped to meet the challenge. My wife likes to remind me “God does not call the qualified, He qualifies the called”. I want to dig into this idea a little with hopes that like John Stephen Akhwari my words my inspire you to Endure the Struggle…

I find it interesting that the Apostle Paul obviously had an interest in sports. There is no evidence in anything written of him that makes us believe that he may have been athletic himself, but he apparently had a very good understanding of the competitive nature of man. Listen to these words.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

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. 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. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 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.

Paul understood one of the key principles of athletic competition, self-discipline. Every athlete must pursue a regimen of training rigorously so that they may compete at the highest level of sport.

Regardless, if you are new to your faith or a seasoned veteran, one thing is very true, we are not born as saints. We come to Christ as sinners in need of a savior. In our walk with God there are lessons to be learned and mistakes to be made. We will find that there will be some things in our lives that we are going need to lay down and others that we will need to pick up. Righteousness in Christ is not a destination to be achieved; it’s a process, a journey.

My Story of Enduring the Struggle

I have never run a marathon. Running is not my thing. But I’m a cyclist. Not the kind with big iron and horsepower, the kind with pedals and just me as the engine. Over the years I have participated in several century rides. This is an event where you ride 100 miles in a day.

These events are a true test of your endurance. Not only do they try you physically but also there is a psychological element to sitting in the saddle for 6 to 8 hours forcing your legs to move and your feet to spin you across the countryside.

Preparing for one of these events takes a lot training. You also have to have the right equipment and a support system that allows you the time to get yourself into race day condition. When I was in training for one of these events I would ride 10 - 12 miles a day, three or four days a week and then do a long training ride of 20 – 30 miles on the weekend.

So you may be asking yourself, “why would anyone do this?” For me the answer is simple. Because all my life I was told that I couldn’t and I was determined to prove to myself that this was simply not true.

You see I was born with a heart defect. It’s pretty common now, but back in the day this was considered fairly serious. Pediatric open-heart surgery in the early 1960s was not a viable option. So this is something that has been a shadow over me all my life.

Honestly, the biggest problem I’ve ever really had from this was an over protective mother who made sure that I never strenuously exerted myself. It’s tough growing up with the idea that you are a fragile kid, particularly when you’re a boy with lots of very active cousins.

Let’s fast-forward a few decades. By the time I was in my thirties I had realized that this was not something that was going to kill me. But there was this shadow, lurking in the recesses of my mind. An ever present nagging doubt that told me, to play it safe. I could not get my mother out of my head telling me to be careful.

I started riding so that I could spend time with my best friend. He had blown out his knee and the doctors suggested cycling as a good recovery exercise. So my friend started rehab on the bike and needed someone to ride with, to keep him focused and moving forward. We started riding the bike trails around his house and I discovered that I really enjoyed it.

So after a season of puttering around on an old beater I got the opportunity to buy up. Actually it was after I had a run-in with a 1987 Impala and lost badly; that my insurance company helped me replace my pretzel of a beater bike with a decent road bike. This began the journey for me.

Over the next ten years I got more and more involved. It was after I finished my first century that I realized I couldn’t hear my mom’s voice in my head anymore. This was a watershed moment for me as a man. It fostered a new sense of confidence and gave me a belief that anything was possible.

I love what the Apostle Paul said to his young protégé Timothy about this idea.

2 Timothy 4-7says,

We are called to - run the good race, to fight the good fight, to finish the course and to keep the faith.

You see Timothy was a young man who was facing opposition from the elders of the church and Paul had confirmed him as an apostle of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He had the same condition, a sense of doubt about his abilities to be an effective leader. Paul was a good mentor and gave him the shot in the arm he needed to stand firm and fight the good fight.

This call still resonates for us, to do the things that need to be done. To stand with courage and face each day with a stout heart knowing that the battle is ours because the Lord is in it with us. And just like John Stephen Akhwari, Jesus did not come to this earth to begin a good work. He came to finish one.

<>< Amen ><>