Because of His Grace, I Can Finish My Race

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

My workout used to be based around running. I believed that through the day I could eat what I wanted to eat knowing that I would run it off at the end of the day. I was an avid runner until I started suffering from arthritis in my knees. This did not stop me from exercising because I had to find a new way to get into my cardio. So, I bike!

 Prior to the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania was just another marathon runner who easily qualified for the Olympics.[1] While running the marathon, he had an accident that put him far behind the other runners. At the stadium with most of its people gone for the day, there remained a few hundred that stood and cheered as John came into the stadium to finish his race. He may not have won the race, but he finished his race.

Many of us have fallen by the wayside, we have made some mistakes, tripped over our own feet, and have become discouraged in this race of life that we run. We can be so discouraged that we are ready to quit and not finish what we started! Even as it pertains to counseling, too many of us start it but fail to see it through because we face setbacks and get discouraged. Let the Word of God remind us that we should be confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ (Phil 1:6). It is by the grace of God that we can finish our race. It is not about how we start; it is about how we finish.”

“Run Forrest Run!”

[1]“I Never Thought of Stopping” International Olympic Committee, Oct. 20, 2020, https://www.olympics.com/ioc/news/-i-never-thought-of-stopping-marathon-man-akhwari-on-his-epic-effort-at-the-68-games