Exo 15:1-3 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him. The LORD is a man of war: the LORD is his name.There are a lot of gruesome battles that were fought in the old testament because the competition for them had to be fought in the senses realm. In this day and time and administration, we are no longer limited to our 5 senses. We have ready access to our heavenly father's strength and resources. The competition in which we participate is not one of war but of athleticism.
Eph 6:10-12 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.We no longer fight physical battles. We wrestle and compete in the arenas of our minds and hearts. The allegory of God's people being athletes is found in several places in the Church epistles.
1Co 9:24-27 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
2Co 10:2-6 But I beseech you, that I may not be bold when I am present with that confidence, wherewith I think to be bold against some, which think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.This morning, as is our custom, my roommate and I went to the high school track near our apartment to exercise. We are working to complete a running plan to build cardiac endurance and health. The workout to be completed today involved pushing myself to alternate between walking and jogging for a total of 2 miles (only a half mile to be walked). Twice in this particular workout, the goal was to jog at an even pace without stopping for a half mile. This may be easy for some, but it was definitely a test of my endurance and proved to be far more strenuous than anything I have done in recent years.
The workout finished with the second half-mile jog, and I was feeling tired. As we finished lap number 1 in this last stretch, the muscles in the back of my leg began to cramp. Shortly after we started lap number 2, the cramping was so bad that it felt as though someone was pulling apart my leg at the knee. My roommate had been encouraging me with phrases like, "you're doing great," "keep it up," and "just a little more." As she saw the pain in my face, she said that if I needed to, I could stop. The pain increased to the point that I couldn't keep going, so I paused. In that moment, she asked me if I wanted to keep going. My mind and body were both screaming "no!" However, I began to move anyway. I made the decision to prove God. I began to think about promises in God's Word like, "God has given me all of the things that I need, including the energy to be my best for Him," and "my body is subject to my mind, and my mind is subject to the Word." Before I knew it, I was beginning to jog again. I was telling myself things like, "There is no way that I'm going to stop competing in this life. There's no way that I am ever going to stop running to serve. God has given me everything that I need to succeed in every situation. etc."
As we rounded the last curve and only had the last straight-a-way to finish, I heard God's still, small voice tell me, "I have not only given you the energy that you need to finish this; I have given you the energy to sprint to the end." I was tired, but I made the decision to believe what He said and claim it. We crossed the line that began the last stretch that would be about 100 meters. Determined, I picked up speed and began to sprint. Before I knew it, I had left her behind and was crossing the finish line. Out of breath but proud and excited because of what God had just done for me, I slowed down and walked to the place that we had set our sweatshirts and where we would stretch. As my heart rate returned to normal, and I caught my breath, my roommate told me how proud of me she was. As soon as I was able to speak, I told her about the victory that I had just had as I claimed God's promise to me. We rejoiced together, and it was a wonderful start to our day.
God taught me this morning about the spiritual competition and how He is able and willing to help us endure and claim victory in the face of adversity. It was wonderful to have this reminder and phenomenally illustrated example directly for me of how we don't have to succumb or stop or faint in our minds to pressure. God both willing and able to help us and to teach us as we claim His promises. How Great! Our bodies our subject to our minds. As we keep our thoughts aligned with The Word, there is literally nothing good in this life that we cannot do!
How inspiring! Thanks, Abi!
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