Have you been missing sports? A lot of us have. There’s a surprising place you can find sports—in the Bible! The apostle Paul used sports analogies to teach us about faith in Jesus. Like this: “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). Life is like a race—to heaven!
Whether you like sports or not, this is important for us to understand. Life is like a race. How often don’t we spend our lives looking backward, thinking about what might have been? How often don’t we get sidetracked and let ourselves get so worked up about things we know aren’t very important (like sports!)? Like a runner running a race with her eyes on the finish line, God encourages you and me to keep our eyes fixed on the prize that’s waiting for us: Heaven with Christ Jesus our Savior.
But here’s where the sports analogy falls short: You winning the race doesn’t actually depend on you. Jesus already won the race when he lived and died and rose for us. The prize is already yours. God has called you heavenward in Christ Jesus. Doesn’t that take the pressure off of us? It’s hard to be in the middle of a race. You’re tired. Worn out. It’s tempting to give up. So Jesus calls you to lift up your eyes and see what’s waiting for you: Heaven! So let’s press on. Don’t give up! There’s a great prize waiting…
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