by Marcia Sanders
David listened to the cheers of his teammates and the crowds in the stands as he pushed himself to run his fastest to the finish line. Dropping to his knees at the end, he gasped for air as he checked his time.
“Wow! What an exciting finish!” his coach
exclaimed. “You gave it your all!”
“I’m beat!” David panted.
His coach smiled. “You’ve earned a rest after that run.”
Later that evening, David enjoyed recounting all of the events of the track meet, but especially his own 800-meter run. “I couldn’t believe how many people were cheering for me and came up to congratulate me afterward. The whole school must have been there! It’s a good thing I didn’t trip and fall. How embarrassing that would have been!”
Papa grinned. “Boy, you did it! You put on quite the performance and represented your school, your team — and yourself — well. That was a long run. Makes me think of the words in Hebrews 12:1: ‘Since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us’” (NASB).
“That verse never meant quite as much to me before today,” David agreed. “I didn’t want to let anyone down, so I gave it my all.”
Papa smiled. “Since you have given your heart to the Lord and announced that you are one of His followers, people will be watching your Christian walk, just as they were watching you run today. You may not know yet just what your personal ministry will look like, but you do know a few things. You know that you are to be a witness for Him and that you must endure to the end. This verse also tells you that you’ll be observed by a lot of people — a great cloud of witnesses — just as you were representing your school today. It’s important to always keep in mind that you are representing our Savior with every word you speak, every place you go, every show you watch, and everything you do. People will judge Christ and the Christian life by what they see in you.”
“That’s a scary thought,” David said. “I sure don’t want to let Jesus down. I’m not sure I’m strong enough.”
“You’re not,” Papa replied.
“Hey, that’s not very encouraging.”
“Hold on,” Papa laughed. “Let me finish. By yourself, you are not strong enough to do battle with the devil. But you are not by yourself. You have God’s Holy Spirit living inside you, and His Spirit is definitely more than enough. You have to seek and follow His leading.” “Oh, I get it. You really had me going there for a while,” David responded. “By myself, I can’t make it, but if I read His Word and seek and follow His guidance, I will.”
Marcia Sanders writes from Fort Smith, AR, where she attends the Church of God (Seventh Day) with her husband, Randy.
