Running the 400

Running the 400

8/18/15

Competitions can be challenging especially when you or a team has a specific prize in sight.  It is very common to have those on your team that do not share the same enthusiasm as others on the team, and therefore, the obtainable prize may collapse and disappear right before your eyes.  The same protocols apply for the Church as well and from the appearance of our society today, the ultimate prize is slipping from our grasp.  It is obvious that the Church has not stepped up to the plate in order to win the people from the world, instead she has joined the enemy and created a huge crutch our chances of winning the overall mark. God cannot allow this act of treason to go unnoticed and for this action we shall see us finish last.

Running has never been my future mark in life.  I will do it if I have to and for the most part only complete this task when I am asked to take a stress test in order to receive a picture of my heart function; both ironic and silly, I know.  I do not mind walking, in fact, I love to walk for it gives me the exercise that I need to ensure that my health stays within the reasonable levels it needs. But running just has not been my cup of tea and up until now, I have no need for it at all.  However, I must be careful in what I proclaim because God does have a sense of humor and He hears everything that I think and say which always puts running as a possibility in my path.

In junior high and in my early years of high school my track coach had me running the 800 meters.  While it is still considered to be a short distance race it can prove to be quite tiresome when it is over.  With my bodily build, I would not be able to withstand any long distance type running which is excellent in my book because I do not see the point in this extended running style.  I never really won any medals or other types of accolades and to be honest I did not wish to overextend myself for these types of awards; and shame on me for not applying myself further and helping out my teammates a little bit more when they needed all the help they could.

My 24-year-old daughter does not share the same attitudes about running as I do.  She is an avid runner and holds complete opposite views on distance running.  She was just out here for about 10 days and she ran most days while she was here.  None of this short distance runs, it was up to 8 miles a day after she got acclimated to the altitude.  She has always loved running and the longer the distance the better she says.  She has participated in some of the regional competitions that show off your determination to be the best and in this manner she has signed up for a full marathon come a short time in the future.  I say more power to her and I am so proud that she is giving it her all in accomplishing this goal of hers.

My junior high school track coach I have mentioned a couple of times before, Mr. Foote.  I have always loved that name, especially for a teacher and sports coach.  He is an excellent example of leadership and authority showing off his teaching skills when it was needed and allowing us boys and girls decide matters on our own when necessary as well.  Coach Foote had a great philosophy about the 400 meter run but while he had this view on the 400 meters he applied it to everything sporting event he coached us in, and he also incorporated this belief in all of our activities including our studies and walk with God.

His philosophy was a difficult one to achieve when trying to apply it to the race but in truth it had to be worked up to, conditioned for instead of an all out one time run.  Coach Foote believe that a person running the 400 meters should give everything that they have in order to complete that race, and have given so much that when the person crosses the finish line that they collapse onto the ground because of total exhaustion.  He believed that it took that much energy and strength to complete this distance run and that nothing short of exhaustion would be accepted as giving one’s best.  It was hard, tough and difficult to obtain, but it was worth every second of the race when it was over.  A person running this distance would know that he / she gave it their all after the race was over.  Funny, Coach Foote never placed coming in first place all the time, but just instilled into us to give it our all with every event in life we participated in.

On my side of the issue I guess I could say that my example of participation would be similar to Moses.  Moses was a great man of God that did some things that were not pleasing in God’s sight.  I am not talking about just before God called Moses to his position in Israel, but after his rise in the eyes of God and after he became the leader of Israel.  While God continued to allow Moses to lead his people his willingness to completely allow God to overtake his decisions at times could be construed as hesitant.  While I am completing the actions that God has called me to do, I can clearly see that when I was a young man I did not have such the enthusiasm or desire to complete this mission as I do today.

If we take a hard look at the example of Moses, we can clearly see that even though he was called by God, he fell short in many areas of his given leadership.  Yet, on the other hand, Moses proved himself to be a very worthy choice to lead God’s children through their times of need.  We can also see that through this example, the goals and leadership of the Church have basically taken a similar path as Moses’ leadership; by falling way short on our overall mission that Jesus gave to us.  It is further evident that the condition of the societies of the world are currently in is strictly due to this lack of truth and spiritual leadership from the Church and shall serve as the perfect compare and contrast setting for this article.

How many times have we had the opportunity to witness to someone and we have failed to complete our task.  How many times have our attitude been publicly sore and our display of such attitude has been called into question by others?  I am not saying that we are perfect and that our lives should be the epitome of existence, but we can be examples of purity when anger rules our current state.  By far, we have witnessed too many instances where the Church and her leaders have been called on the carpet for their actions, and it does not look like it shall stop anytime soon either.  It is through these known examples and countless more unknown accusations that we are providing the example of Moses and his bad times instead of the Moses leading his people out of bondage.

I do not know how much my lack of enthusiasm has cost me over my four decades of life but I do know that my actions stand out just as much as Moses’ did when he had trouble in fulfilling God’s commands for His people.  Moses’ hesitancy cost him from seeing the Promised Land that God had shown to him, and it cost many other lives as well.  But it was obvious that God had placed Moses into that role for a reason and Moses did fulfill this goal that God had for Israel, even though it was after his life was over.  I pray that through all of my experiences in life that I have learned my lesson way sooner than that of Moses and that my mission for God is completed as it should be, not as I see fit.  For if I do it my way then I am ignoring Coach Foote’s wishes for my life by not achieving my best at all events and succumbing to the temptation of distractions.

We as the Church have two fantastic examples of people following through with their utmost in their missions here on earth. The first one of course, is Jesus and mankind shall always have this perfect example to learn from and to guide ourselves.  While it is our desire to be like Jesus we know that as long as we have this simple, finite and flawed body we shall never obtain this immaculate example and while my personal Moses example bites us in the behind there is another example of how we are supposed to be when it comes to our mission that Jesus gave us.

The second and the one example that God wants us to understand is that of Saul / Paul.  Many of us know that Paul wrote most of the New Testament books and was a great advocate for Christ in his later years.  But what many may not know is that at one time Paul had another name and another profession, a vocation that was detrimental to Christians and those who wished to follow Jesus instead of their Jewish origins.  While this portion of Paul’s life he probably would like to forget it does serve as the perfect contrast to Moses’ and the current state of the Church.

Paul did not always have this exact name for himself.  It was changed when he had his encounter with God and before this encounter occurred he was called Saul.  Saul was a great man in the Jewish community and served the leadership of the Jewish community well.  He was an important man within this leadership who was on his way up the hierarchy and had obtained this status through the works that he completed for his bosses.

According to the Jewish leadership, Saul had one of the most important jobs that could be performed, locate, find and destroy as many people who professed themselves to be Christians.  The local and regional Jewish hate for Christ and what He had established infuriated the Jewish leaders and it was their sworn testimony to rid themselves of any further nonsense of Jesus and whoever decided to follow Him.  Saul was chosen to be the one who led this task and it was his charge to see that as many Christians possible were owed this due prosecution.  No one was better at completing this task given and Saul’s name was feared throughout the entire land since his territory was unlimited.  Saul served his bosses with perfection and was driven by a prideful fervor that was unmatched to others assigned with the same job.  Saul did his best every day and ran his race that he was given with all available energy.

Another important task was handed down to Saul and as usual he left his bosses with the killer instincts that he had developed over the years.  He was on the road to Damascus when God appeared to him and began asking him questions.  No doubt questions had at one time flooded Saul’s mind but in another context; coming from the people who he was killing instead from the One he was persecuting.  God changed Saul that day and permanently redirected his fervor of life and it would not have been too hard for one to understand if Saul’s desires would have changed as well, but as we read and understand the remaining portions of his life he did not lose one ounce of any vitality.

One of the first things God did for Saul was to change his name.  He would no longer be known by the name that many people in the land feared but would be changed to another name that would define fear to another kingdom instead.  I have heard of people changing their names in response to violent acts committed against them or those who are disgusted and blinded by the lies of the world and in both instances are futile reasons, but to have God change your name in order to redefine your purpose is a miraculous and extraordinary opportunity.  One cannot get any more “changed” than having your birth name changed by the Creator of all life.

Secondly and immediately God changed Saul’s heart to Paul’s heart which was another example of how God separates us from the world.  Many emotions had to have flowed through Paul’s life when this event occurred, both good ones and bad ones. These countless changes would have sent shockwaves through his life and totally wiped out his entire belief system, all on a holy level of course, further proof that a person’s directional fervor could have been changed as well.  But when God is in control of changes, His ways are pure and perfect and as Paul took control of these changes it becomes evident that he lost nothing but gained the true purpose of his life as a result.

As stated above Paul wrote most of the epistles contained within the New Testament.  The writings that God gave to him to share with the Church cannot be more accurate of what is also occurring in today’s Church.  Paul saw what the moods of the Church were and addressed it according to Kingdom values, not kingdom values.  He noticed that the concepts of the Church were crumbling from God’s Ways and thus accepting the ways of the world.  His writings should serve notice of the pitfalls that the Church is subject to and will adhere to if not fully aware of the realm of our enemy.

In this manner, Paul continues the demeanor that Saul had and gave it his all with the full intention of giving his life for God’s truth if necessary.  There is no question that Saul’s intentions were of the same caliber and this intensity God refined into Paul. Of course Paul was human and at some point had a few doubts in his life but there is no real indication that he wavered in his theological stance towards God.  Paul shook off the temptations of Moses and kept the strong forward projection of God’s Kingdom in focus.  This is the compare and contrast of these two great men in the Bible and while both are far greater than I, all of us fit into one of these categories when it comes to God and His will for our lives.

Today it is easy for us to imagine a Church that is perfect and spotless but the truth is that we have lost the real meaning of what Christ meant for His Bride.  His bride will be adorned in White, but it will be the color of white that He sees, not us.  To us His color of white will be a dirty color and the bride shall not have trimmed and proper nails, but those of scratches and calluses as a sign of being in the fields working.  It is this type of leadership and clawing against the world that Jesus is looking for in our lives, not ones sitting back conforming to every whim our enemy sets into motion.  While Moses was a great leader he allowed himself to listen to the multitudes instead of what God was showing him, and it cost him dearly.  The same shall happen to the Church if we do not stop and take a look at what we have allowed to occur, both in our own lives and in the world.

We must recognize that it takes a true change within our lives, from God, in order for our purpose to be known to the world. Even though Paul was shaken and tried, his attitude and fervor did not change when God transformed his life, it only grew in intensity.  This is how the Church should be acting by recognizing that she is separated from the world in ALL ways and that her mission in life is to claw her way into people’s lives and to share with them the gospel that her Groom has given.  If she is not completing this mission in this manner then she is prostituting herself out to the world instead of drawing people from the world.

My consequences for my lack of participation and desire in track not only affected my personal performance it also held back the others on my team.  There is no difference in our spiritual lives either and it is necessary that we grasp this truth now.  We have sat back and waited for God to return without trying to get our nails and fingers broken and dirty.  Our country has lost its way simply because the Church has failed in her mission and our consequences shall be grave. 

The just and the unjust God judges accordingly, at the same time.  Our country has fallen in a spiritual category and it is about to fall in all other categories as well.  Read this message, hide it within your heart and contemplate its message for it shall be needed one day real soon!  And when our day returns we must have the initiative to run our 400 meters with all of our energy and be willing to give to God what He deserves, a true runner and messenger for Him.

DLB