Learning through analogy
Are you a runner? Athlete? Maybe just competitive by nature, or highly goal-oriented? If so, you're probably familiar with the verses below. One of the things I love about the scriptures is how they teach us through analogy. They take a familiar concept that we know and understand and teach us truth about our faith and relationship with God.
“Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith.” – Hebrews 12:1-2, HCSB
Over the last few months, I have been training to run the Wisconsin Half Marathon, coming up on Saturday, May 7. This distance is a stretch for me, considering that I just started running last year, and ran my first 5K back in September. (When I finished high school, I'd run a mile exactly once, and gave up most forms of physical exertion shortly thereafter.) I've run 98 training miles so far (66 just in April) building my endurance and preparing for my race, and in two weeks, I think I'll be ready. As I'm training, two things stand out to me from these verses.
Endurance
First, the verses call us to endurance. They say nothing of speed, rank, or position- simply that we must stick to the task at hand. I'm not a fast runner, and I certainly won't be setting any course records in a few weeks. Frankly, that doesn't matter. My race is simply about crossing the finish line. The same is true in our adoption, and in our faith. We measure our progress by completion- nothing short of it.
Focus
Second, we stay focused. Our adoption- bringing home a son or daughter- motivates me as I run. I started tweeting all of my training runs along with the tag #runningforgrace to serve as a constant reminder of that goal. I've run through snow blowing sideways and 20°F temps, and with the sun beating down, always pressing on for one purpose. In the same way, we focus our eyes on Jesus. God has called us, enabled us (through your generosity!) and serves as my example of a father. It's interesting to me that the following verses in Hebrews 12 go on to talk about our relationship to God as his (adopted) children. God has woven that story throughout scripture and once you see it, you can't ignore it.
#runningforgrace
I want to raise $1310 - $100 per mile - by #runningforgrace. To be honest, I've struggled with how to ask for sponsors on this, even after seeing God's faithfulness through his people. I will be running the half marathon either way, though I would really appreciate your encouragement and support. Hitting that goal for the race would move us to 50% of our total fundraising- a HUGE milestone. If you're able to help us reach that, you can give directly through our donation page.
Thanks,
Adam