Running to Daylight!

[Clip from “Miracle,” 2004, Disney. Scene 6, “Training,” 32:48-34:52]

How would you like to have him for your coach? Whew! It kind of shows you that the miracle on ice had more than a little effort behind it. It’s like he’s asking these gentlemen, “How bad do you want it?” Maybe that’s what God is asking us through the words of the Apostle Paul this morning. Please take your Bibles, turning to 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, and let’s stand in honor of God’s Word. [Read Scripture.]

It’s that time of year again [Olympic theme playing in the background]. The very best athletes from around the world are gathered to compete at the very highest levels. The Olympics set an amazing series of images in front of us. I love to watch the luge! The speeds are mind boggling! I miss the Jamaican bobsled team! We see speed skaters with monstrous legs, suffering on the ice for 10,000 meters, making it look easy! We see downhill skiers taking terrifying risks to be the first to the bottom. How about the ski jumpers? How amazing it must feel to fly through the air from amazing heights! Then the figure skaters show us grace and beauty on ice! We see amazing athletes whose bodies obey their every command. It’s truly inspiring!

What kind of shape are you in? Anyone here ready to compete for an Olympic medal? Do you sometimes wonder what it takes to get from where you and I are to where these athletes are? It takes an airplane ticket, because that’s about as close as you and I are ever going to get! Just kidding! Actually, more and more people are becoming top-level athletes later in life. From the commercials, it seems like Home Depot is the place to work if you’re chasing Olympic glory and need to train 30 hours a week! What it takes is the kind of thing Coach Herb Brooks was trying to teach his team.

Paul was trying to teach his Corinthian team these same principles. It seems Paul and people in his culture were also impressed by top athletes in action. He saw in them a worthy life lesson. We hear from him a great metaphor for spiritual life, wrapped up in Olympic glory. “In a race, all the runners run (or skiers ski), but only one gets the prize” (v. 24). Isn’t that why they have the Olympics, to get the prize? This past summer Lance Armstrong was riding in the Tour de France. He already held the record of 6 wins in a row. Therefore, someone asked if he was going to take it easy this Tour. He said, “I didn’t come here to finish second. I came here to win.”

Oh, but you’re saying, “I’m not like these Olympic athletes! I’m not even as good as Paul! I never even win the free scratch-off game at the hamburger joint! I’m not a winner. Certainly not spiritually. I’m not as strong as the next guy.” Paul says, “Great! I know exactly how you feel! When I felt the same way, God told me, “My Grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness. Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses so that Christ’s power may rest on me…for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9, 10b). We come to Christ just as we are. He accepts us in our current condition. He forgives, heals, transforms, and builds us up! We admit our weaknesses. He pours in the spiritual strength we need. Then He gives us a purpose! We are to grow in relation to Him the rest of our lives.

Paul says more than that. He wants us to aim for the prize! Now, Paul is shifting his Olympic theme here for a moment. The prize we seek is not only for the first person across the line. The prize we seek is for all who finish strong in the Lord. At the Olympics, merely finishing is not winning. But in life, to finish God’s way is to overcome the world and have total spiritual victory! It’s more like the Tour in that way. It’s a 21-day journey. You can’t dig too deep into the suitcase of courage just to look like a hero on the first day. It’s about having the legs to cross the line in Paris on day 21. If you cross that line without cheating or compromising, you are forever known as a Tour Finisher. You’ve got to do right and take care of yourself everyday to join that elite club. In general, high level athletics will make you holy to a certain extent. You will cut out all junk food, bad habits, and wrong thinking. It has a cleansing effect to reach for your full potential. Paul asks, “Why should Christians who are aiming for an eternal prize settle for less?”

What does an athlete do? They totally restructure their lives around the training necessary to win. What do many Christians do? Totally restructure their lives around their favorite reality TV show! Can you see the contrast here? Are they running to get the prize? Have they lost sight of their vision? It’s a good thing you’re not anything like those other Christians!

God offers us a much more worthy focus for our lives, “Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat 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 9:26-27). We know it is possible to lose out on your relationship with God. If you truly walk away from your commitment to Christ and deny it, you can lose it. Sometimes Wesleyan people walk around worrying they might lose their salvation. Paul points us in a much more positive direction. Give every day the spiritual focus it deserves. Find meaning, a purpose, and growth in every experience. Can you hear coach Brooks? “You’re going to have to learn to grow through the pain, gentlemen!”

It’s as if Paul is our life coach and he’s challenging us to achieve our potential. Coach Brooks said, “We may not be the best team at the Olympics, but we will be the best conditioned!” You may not be a spiritual giant, but you can fulfill your potential!
Okay, Pastor, I hear you, but does this mean I need to run laps or learn how to skate?
Not unless God says you need to grow in that area! The discipline God is looking for in our lives goes beyond the physical. God can bring us into a state of total discipline, total obedience. Technically perfect spiritual discipline? No, Jesus did that; you and I will fall short of that kind of perfection. I like to call it purposefully perfect. In other words, God can perfect our spirit, mind, body, and heart until we fulfill His purpose for our lives. Paul says, “I don’t want to miss one bit of what God has for me in this life or the next!”

What does spiritual discipline look like? It looks a lot like: you praying, you reading your Bible, you listening for God, you fasting occasionally and eating right, you getting some exercise, you taking time for others, you loving even when you’re tired. It’s where you’ll find the true meaning for your life! It seems like work when you first start out. After a while you wouldn’t miss it for the world! “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives' tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:7-8). Training yourself to be godly is your daily opportunity. Let its promise be fulfilled in you.

To be successful in the Tour de France requires 20,000 miles of training. To be successful in the Christian life requires a similar daily commitment. The old-timers called it “being prayed up,” so when crisis comes you can respond. There are so many different ways to pray. One simple way to get started is called A.C.T.S. It stands for Adoration (worshiping God for who He is), Confession (admitting our need for God and any sin in our lives), Thanksgiving (counting the blessings of this life and thanking God for answered prayers), and Supplication (presenting others’ needs to God, then your own). This pattern helps us avoid the shopping list prayers we often fall into. It balances praise and thanks with requests. It also keeps the relationship up to date in case brokenness has crept in.

Another important form of prayer is contemplation. In this kind of prayer we focus on one aspect of God’s character or on a piece of Scripture. You can focus your mind on this one thing and reflect on what God is saying to you through it. It will deepen and personalize your understanding of Scripture, and/or God’s nature. This one is harder to do and requires some concentration to feel the benefit. Richard Foster’s book Prayer is highly recommended. The Upward Call is another great book on spiritual discipline, available from NPH. The main thing is this: Spiritual training is not just for professionals! Do try this at home! Dive in and give some daily energy to growing your spirit God’s way. You and those around you will benefit.

There are some athletes who have much more talent, but they don’t fulfill their potential. Paul is trying to get our attention here. “Run in such a way as to get the prize.” Some people train, but then simply don’t apply their training when the time calls for it. Running to get the prize means you give it your all. You lean into the tape. You don’t look to see how your neighbor is doing. You don’t give up. Until the race is over anyone could win. That’s why they run the races. The one who is ready and giving their all will win, regardless of talent. These are the ones who find success on the Christian journey, those who stay alert to God’s plan. It would be a waste to spend three hours in prayer each morning, only to schlep carelessly through your day distracted by the world. Remember that it’s in living life that we really benefit from our training. If we horde it all selfishly, we’ll stop growing. If we don’t share our hope with others it will become less important to us.

It’s a two-pronged plan: 1) train like you really want to grow and 2) live like you really want to win with Jesus! Don’t wander into places you shouldn’t be. Stick to the training and racing God has for you. A couple of years ago we had some fun at our church as we challenged each other to “Go for the Gold with God!” We handed out gold medals to everyone and encouraged each other to be at our best for God! This bright journey we’re on shines better than any medal the Olympic Committee ever handed out. Go into strict training. Then run for daylight! Out of the darkness of sloppy living. Into the light of Jesus’ love! [If possible arrange to have someone from your congregation in appropriate athletic apparel. Have them appear from darkness, shine a spot light on them, if available. Have them run (they can look silly; it will still be memorable) right through the middle of the congregation and out the door with a Whoop and a shout “Yahoo!” like they’re having the time of their lives! (Be sure to provide for safety by blocking the aisle beforehand!)] There’s no better way to live! [If you have a media team, have them prepare a video sequence where the scripture passage scrolls past with inspirational music in the background, fading to black after “Run in such a way as to get the prize.”]