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A sharing by Helen Chang for this song:

As I was never a sporty person from young, and the only sport I ever did was the table tennis, so I had absolutely no idea what a runner has to go through to be trained for a race. I only heard that he would have a very disciplined and regular training programme. So, the better he wants to be, the longer it may take him to be trained.

That’s why when I first came across this passage in Hebrew 12:1-2, I had great difficulties to understand the concept of running a race in the Christian life. Then as I reflected on the enthusiasm of those runners in other races especially those at the Olympic Games, I pondered as to what had enthused them to such an extent? Was it the satisfaction they got in reaching the finishing line as fast as they could? To be faster than all others, if possible, too! Better still is to get a medal, to stand on the podium for a photo for all the world to see, and to have their name on the record to show what they have achieved. Yes these are very good and enough to enthuse so many athletes in history.

While it seems understandable on a physical aspect but there seems no choice for Christians but to be in a race! So what does it mean to be in this race? I then looked at the life of the Lord Jesus. He said in John 4:34, ‘ My food is to do the will of Him Who sent me…’. Since his goal in life was so clearly set before him then regardless of what ever happened to him in life, he would focus sharply on fulfilling that goal! What an ultimate challenge for the Lord Jesus not only to endure all the sufferings and rejection but that he was even able to despise such shame and suffering because he knew that through this path he could reach his goal without fail. So for him to do the will of God in saving man from sin and death was the one and only goal for his life and because he delighted to do God’s will then this goal was his joy regardless of all the shameful and painful suffering along the path to achieving that goal!

Now that I have the life of the Lord Jesus as an example for me and if I wish to respond to God’s love wholeheartedly, would I not be more than honoured to join this race? To follow in the footsteps of the Lord Jesus by looking to him as the pioneer and the perfector of my faith such that I could endure to reach the finishing line of this race by doing God’s will in saving others too!

So may you be encouraged to join this race and by God’s grace to joyfully endure to the end to doing God’s will also!

(c) 2021 Christian Disciples Church