Run the Race
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”
Hebrews 12:1
I recently listened to a Podcast that was interviewing marathon runners about their training and their mindset. The people they interviewed said something that struck me. There was a repeated theme that struck me as I listened, and that was that every person mentioned the certainty of pain. They talked about the pain and suffering that comes to your body when running a marathon, from blisters and sores to dehydration, cramps, shin splints, sprains, and even broken bones. After hearing the gruesome description of the suffering one endures in order to run a marathon, the interviewer (and myself) are left to wonder: Why do it?! Why would one willing commit themselves to running a marathon and take on so much torment to their bodies. Their response: The rush you get in the end makes all of it worth it.
Now, don’t get me wrong, you will not be seeing me sign up for a marathon any time soon, but it got me thinking about the marathon of life, especially as a mom.
When having young children at home, it takes an incredible amount of patience to teach them procedures and systems like how to put away their toys, sort the laundry, learn morning/bedtime routines, etc. And the reality is, we say we want to teach them how to do it, but we are unwilling to be patient through the process of learning. In fact, in as soon as just one week, we throw in the towel on our well-intended efforts and we end up just doing it ourselves because, we all know, that’s easier!
But just because something is easier for us to do, doesn’t mean we should take away those learning opportunities from our children and/or put those responsibilities on ourselves. The reality is, we can only do so much for ourselves before we hit burn out, exhaustion, and resentment for a lack of “help”. One day, your child is going to be 10, and you’re going to think to yourself, it’s time they start doing their part. The problem with waiting until then is that your child has now learned that you are going to provide for all their needs and take care of all the things!
Although it is hard at the beginning, and it requires a lot of patience, learning to overcome those small hurdles when your child is young is going to save you a much bigger headache later on. If we see our daily tasks as a “short sprint”, starting when we wake up and rushing through the day trying to get as much done as we can, then we end up tiring ourselves out, running on fumes, and we aren’t able to give our best to those around us that need it most. Not only are we not able to give our best, but when we are tired and exhausted we are more susceptible to giving into our sin, anger, impatience, and other vices.
Life is a marathon, but you only have 18 years with your children before you send them off into the world as adults, expected to contribute to society and raise another generation. Parenting, and training up your children is no easy feet, but let us run the race with endurance a life of faith that God has set before us.
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”
(Hebrews 12:1)