Run Your Race: Embrace Your Unique Faith Journey

"And so they're climbing mountains. They're navigating rivers. They're having to cycle through muddy roads. It's a grueling race. And to watch these people start off so strong and they're so encouraging. You know, you get the little... They interview them and they're so excited. They're so optimistic about being able to finish. And then about halfway through, you notice about half of the people have dropped out or gotten injured or gave up. And the ones that are winning, they look very tired and they look very wore out. It's a tough race. It's a hard race. It's a hard race. And our faith is a hard race. It can be considered almost, it probably is, the hardest and longest race that we're going to run. And it is hard to be a Christian. It is good to be a Christian, though. There's a faith race that we have to do. And the writer of Hebrews is reminding us and reminding you today that we have this race that God has set out for us to run. It's your own race. He has given each and every one of you a race to run. And he knows that you can run. He knows that you can make it, but he's given you all that you need to do it. And I want to talk specifically to a few people in here today. The first people I want to talk to is for those that have not even got in the race yet." [00:53:12] (73 seconds)


"Maybe you're kind of sitting on the sidelines. You're sitting in the spectator seat and you're looking at other people of faith or maybe you're questioning Christianity. You're not sure if that's what you really want to do or not. And you're here today and you're like, maybe I can follow Jesus if he's worth following. Maybe I can get in this race. Maybe I can get in this race if the prize is really worth it. I want to tell you today, and I pray that at the end of this message, you know that following Jesus is the greatest prize that you can have." [00:54:25] (28 seconds)


"And that you came here today and maybe he's already speaking to your heart. Maybe it was during worship. Maybe it was as soon as you walked through the door. Jesus is telling you it's time to get in the race. It's time for you to put your feet in the racing blocks and get ready to race for him. He has a journey for you. He has a race for you. And it's a good race. And he's given you everything that you can to accomplish it. The passage starts off with this array of witnesses around you telling you that they did it and you can do it." [00:54:52] (35 seconds)


"There's things weighing you down. The passage goes on to say, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that trips us up. Do you know that all weight isn't bad? Some of the things that are slowing you down and some of the things that are keeping you from running your race, they're not bad things. They're just distractions. What in your life right now is causing you to not follow Jesus, to not put your eyes on him? It says we do this. We keep in the race by fixing our eyes to Jesus Christ." [00:58:37] (36 seconds)


"Maybe you're weary and maybe you're tired because you've been looking at everybody else, wondering what they're doing, and you're not looking at the finish line. I haven't ran a lot of 5Ks in my life. I've ran a few. I haven't never ran a marathon. Maybe one day I'll walk a marathon. But I know when I run a 5K, it's like you're going about halfway, you're really tired, and then you get to the very end, you see people starting to finish. And anything about a race I know is when you see the finish line, there's a new energy that comes." [00:59:26] (33 seconds)


"There's a story in the Bible about a young man named King David. And God called him to run his race. He told David, get in the blocks, run your race. Your race is to be the king of Israel. David answered the call, he got in the blocks and he started running hard. And then one day this Philistine shows up in the Israelite camp and he challenges the Israelites. He's this giant of a man. And he says, I'll tell you what, guys, if y 'all can beat me, then we'll serve you. But if I beat you, then you will serve us. And nobody had the courage to stand up to Goliath until David came along." [01:02:04] (40 seconds)

"David knew who he was. He knew his race. He wasn't running anybody else's race but his own. When the king tried to put something on him that didn't fit, he quickly took it off and said, that's not who I am. I'm a shepherd. God's with me. God's called me to be a shepherd to his people. People, I know what I know. And too many of us look at what we have and think, man, God can't use me. I'm just a shepherd. All I'm good with is a staff and a sling that can topple kingdoms." [01:05:10] (33 seconds)


"Here's something to ask yourself. I'm not going to pick on you too much, but there's something in your life that you need to let go of for a little bit so you can get closer to God. Could be a hobby. Could be a habit. Could be how you spend your time. Could be how you spend your money. Could be your attitude. Probably need to drop that anyway. But there's something in your life that is holding you back, that's weighing you down. And God's saying, hey, if you just give that up, I'm going to put something else in your hand. If you just give that up, you're going to find something that you can't lose." [01:06:05] (36 seconds)


"William Borden said, I'm going to follow God with no reserve. There's nothing that's held back. I'm giving it all to him. There's no plan B. I'm following full steam. I'm getting my feet in the tracks, and I'm running his race. There's no retreat. I'm not going to give up no matter what. Even when he got sick, he stayed in there, and he still was a witness where he was at in Egypt. He said, there's no regrets. When William saw his master in heaven, there was no regrets. He served him faithfully." [01:09:52] (32 seconds)


"Failure is only when you decide not to get back up. God is always there. He's ready to pick you up. Just because you started the race well and you fell doesn't mean you're out of the race and disqualified. Get back up. You can still run the race and you can still win. I want to show you a story about this young lady. She ran her race. And she didn't give up. She didn't give in when she fell down and she ended up winning something amazing." [01:17:12] (31 seconds)


"Don't give up. Don't give in. Get up. Run the race hard. You can win. Look out for you. Look out for you. And you should say, yeah, look out for me. I'm coming. I'm coming for a comeback. I love comeback stories. And maybe today is your comeback story. Maybe today you need to put your feet back in the blocks. Get up and run hard for Jesus." [01:19:05] (21 seconds)


"Maybe you're running hard and you got tired like the little kid. Run. Find your pace. Here's what I know about Jesus. It's not if you get first place in the race. It's if you finish the race. And he'll come alongside you. He'll grab your hand and say, come on, let's walk this thing together to the end. Because it's about finishing the race, not placing in the race. The reward's the same." [01:21:30] (29 seconds)