Racing Against Life - Martin Wiles

If racing against mere men makes you tired, how will you race against horses? Jeremiah 12:5 NLT

The finish line was three and one-tenth miles away, but it seemed farther.

At almost forty years of age, I decided to run. I had heard about the runner’s “high” and wanted to experience it. My daughter had been running track and cross country for a few years. Watching her and her teammates made my longing to run even keener. 

My goal was to run in 5K races. My morning walks were two miles. After getting conditioned to fast walking, I began jogging. My body could tell the difference. When I had the jogging down, I started running half my normal walking distance. In time, I began running the entire two miles.

Eventually, I worked up to 5K. When I felt I was in good enough shape to try a race, I signed up my daughter and me for charitable 5K races in nearby towns. I ran in several, but the running wasn’t easy. I finally decided I was either too heavy, too old, or too arthritic to run. I returned to walking.

As Jeremiah delivered his doomsday message that the southern kingdom of Judah would soon fall into the hands of their Babylonian enemies, people opposed him. God’s question was how he would stand—or run—when things got really bad.

At middle age, I’ve determined I can’t handle life. I never could; I just thought I could. When I was young, I was invincible—or so I thought. No harm could come to my body or my emotions. Death was conquerable. You know, the normal thoughts teens and young adults think—even though they know they’re irrational.

The fact that I needed God, truly needed Him, finally dawned on me. I didn’t need Him as a crutch. I could function. But I needed Him for a relationship. The issues of life often grow more complicated when one gets older. Things are not always cut and dry . . . black or white.

I won’t always understand life—as I’m sure Jeremiah didn’t. Leaning on God and letting Him help me run, will result in stronger faith, better wisdom, and greater dependence. His Spirit in me can help me run the race of life as nothing else can.

Running against life can be difficult. Depending on God’s Spirit, Christian friends, and other beneficial support systems helps. Don’t try to run the race of life alone.

Prayer: Father, guide us by Your Spirit so we might run well this race called life. 

Tweetable: How do you race against life?

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