Recently, in an effort to 'get fit in my forties', I’ve started doing sprints.
Well, sprints may be a tad exaggerated. It’s more of a jog. Or a glorified shuffle. But the experts say that high-intensity bursts interspersed by moderately paced exercise reduce one’s heart age by 20 years.
For me, that looks like about two minutes of jogging followed by two minutes of walking and back and forth for a total of about 30 minutes.
But the heart health results that I just referenced don’t happen in two weeks or even two months. It takes two years of consistent interval training to get your health back to what it was twenty years ago.
It’s the long game.
Much like our faith journey. The apostle Paul reminds us in Hebrews 12 of another race — not a sprint but more a marathon.
Here’s what he writes:
'Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart'. (Hebrews 12: 1-3)
Friend, here’s how we are instructed to run the race of faith:
According to reliable sources (okay, it was Instagram), the hot trend in the workout world is … weighted vests. You might have seen the reels about it. The resistance provided by the vest (which looks like one of those SWAT team bulletproof life jackets) can help you burn more calories as you walk.
Unlike this latest craze, when it comes to our faith journeys, we are instructed to 'throw off everything that hinders'. This doesn’t refer to your in-your-face, blatant sin. But, the subtle weight that creates resistance in your walk with Jesus. A little self-examination will show you and me our invisible weighted vest. The call is to throw it off — not just the obvious sin that entangles us, but the weight that slows us down. What’s your 'weighted vest' that hinders your walk with Jesus?
The last leg of my 'glorified shuffle' every morning is painful to watch. I’m a hot, sweaty mess. I’m panting like a steam engine. My hair looks like I’ve emerged from a sauna. My body hurts from the effort. But I have a goal in mind for the number of minutes I have to push through. And so I keep going.
In our spiritual lives, too, Paul instructs us to keep on keeping on, especially when we feel like giving up. When it doesn’t make sense. When we’re tired. When we’re burned out. When Christians let us down. When the thing we prayed for doesn’t happen. When we are hot, sweaty messes, … we need to keep running anyway. What are some of the things that make you want to throw in the towel when it comes to your faith journey?
The Christian race is not a competition. You have a completely different track from the person next to you. Our individual race is 'marked out for us'. The God of the universe has charted out a course for your race. So, we don’t look over our shoulders. We stick to our own tracks. And sometimes, our running looks more like a slow crawl — but that’s okay because it’s on the track He has designed for us.
Every race has a finish line. For my sprint-walks, my goal is three kilometers. The second my Apple watch says I’ve completed my 3 km, I’m outta there.
For Christians, the goal of our race is Jesus. As we run our race, we keep our eyes fixed on Him. He is the prize. He is our very great reward. The key to endurance is our focus on Him.
He endured the cross for the joy set before Him. And that joy — believe it or not — is you.
So, friend, run your race. And keep your eyes on Jesus. He is the author and perfecter of your faith. All you need to do is put one foot in front of the other.
Photo by Steven Lelham on Unsplash
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