Be Patient

Be Patient

One of the first lessons learned by long-distance runners is patience. That’s not the case for sprinters, who start as fast as possible and measure each race in seconds. When the run is more than a mile, successful competitors understand that the race is won at the end, not the beginning, so they pace themselves in order to have energy and stamina when they need them. Many marathons—such as New York, Boston, and Chicago—draw tens of thousands of runners, and all those behind the elite competitors at the front learn another lesson in patience as they weave around and through other runners the whole way, patiently working their way forward. Runners also learn patience by enduring a variety of aches, pains, and inconveniences such as poor weather conditions. And this may seem obvious, but they know they can’t finish a marathon unless they run 26.2 miles—not easy for anyone.

Pain is part of the process; but without the pain, runners won’t gain the prize and the joy of competing well and finishing strong. Runners also know that they grow stronger by running through the hard times of a race.

This is true of life in general, not just in running. It’s a truth emphasized in a familiar Bible passage:

Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. (James 1:2-4)

Now there’s a challenge: “Consider [your troubles] an opportunity for great joy.” That will take patience indeed.

The Runner

Heather jogged along the path that wound through her town, just a light run to give her a chance to take a much-needed break to gather her thoughts.

“I need a decision by tomorrow,” her boss had said. “This is a great opportunity that may never come again, and I think you’d be foolish not to take it.”

The offered promotion sounded so inviting—more responsibility, increased salary, opportunities to travel. But Heather wasn’t comfortable with the values of the company and actually had been thinking of quitting. “What should I do, Lord?” she whispered as she ran. “How can I pass this up?”

And then, almost in time with her strides, she sensed God whispering back, “Patience . . . trust me . . . patience . . . trust me.”

Patience had never been Heather’s strong suit. As a baby, her favorite expression had been “Now!” And as a child, she would hunt for her Christmas presents around the house—she couldn’t wait until December 25. But she could remember her father saying, “Be patient, Heather, and trust me. You’ll love Christmas!” She also remembered family vacation trips when she would continually ask, almost plead, “Are we there yet? How much longer?” and Mom would tell her to be patient, that the destination would be worth the trip. Another great test of patience had been the braces on her teeth—right at thirteen when she was beginning to be concerned about how she looked. “You’ll have to be patient,” Aunt Barb had told her. “You’ll only have them a couple of years, but your new smile will be worth it.”

Wait . . . patience . . . trust! Those three words seemed to always go together. And Heather had to admit, her dad, mom, and aunt had been right. The thought stopped her on the path, and tears formed as she prayed, “Forgive me, Lord, for thinking I know best and for being so impatient. Help me to trust you.”

And Heather made her decision.

The Race

When we receive a promise, we can patiently wait for it to be fulfilled if we trust the person making the promise. The Bible highlights many promises of God to us, offering us hope. In places like the passage in James, it’s as if God is saying, “Hang in there. Trust me. Your troubles are building you up, and soon everything will be all right—you’ll see.” And if we pass this test of faith and learn this lesson of growing endurance, we’ll be ready for anything and experience “great joy.”

The Result

As you consider how patient you are, remember that it’s a matter of trust. And hear this amazing promise that should motivate you in every race:

Those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

My Story

“And why do you run?” is a question I get from people who think I’m slightly odd at best and deranged at worst. Depending on my mood, I might answer, “Because I hope I can.”

There is truth to my answer, especially because I began running long distances in my midforties and entered my first marathon, Chicago 2009, in my early fifties. Over the next decade I want to run my four “biggies”: New York, San Diego, Houston, and finally (Lord willing) qualify for the Boston.

I ran my first 5K in 1973 as a freshman on the cross-country team. Although at most practices I ran a 10:30-mile pace, placing me among the last third of my teammates, for that event I had pictured myself winning the race ahead of even seniors who could run a 6:30-mile pace.

When the gun sounded, I flew ahead of everyone as if I had wings on my heels, putting a fifty-yard distance between me and the others. I glanced back at the shrinking runners behind me and thought, This isn’t so hard.

Then at the quarter-mile turn, something awful happened: My side began aching, my breathing became heavy, and my legs slowed to a trot. Then my pride took a serious (though necessary) blow as all fifty runners breezed past me. By the mile-one marker, I could not run another step. I walked ever so slowly and sheepishly back to the start, never to finish my first cross-country race. I did, however, complete that one and only season of cross-country, usually running in the back third of the pack.

Fast-forward thirty-three years to a cold October Saturday morning in Grant Park, where I and more than forty thousand other runners lined up to run the Chicago Marathon. This time I had no visions of a great finish and had strategically placed myself in the middle of the pack with the ten-minute-mile pacesetters.

After the national anthem and the raining down of discarded sweat pants and shirts, I began to finish what I started back at my first cross-country race. And when I hit the wall this time (about mile eighteen), I kept running. From then on, though, I must admit that after each water station I found the stiffness and ache in both knees harder to ignore as I returned to my running.

At mile twenty-five, a runner just to my left collapsed suddenly to the asphalt from severe cramping in both of his calves. Do I keep going and finish or stop and help? I wondered. I stopped, bent down, and helped him sit up while a runner from Atlanta with whom I had been running the last three miles motioned for race personnel. For the moment, I forgot that I was only one short mile from the finish. Under the capable hands of race officials, the exhausted man slowly got up and limped off to the side of Michigan Avenue.

My running partner and I looked at each other, both feeling our own cramping, and looked north toward the finish. In those first few steps, the ache screamed from every muscle in my legs and back, “Why are you running?”

I did not answer myself. Instead, with every step, the pain lessened and my pace increased as I could hear the crowd at the finish line with the announcer’s voice from tower-high speakers cheering the runners on to the finish.

Then it happened: After four hours, thirty-two minutes, I crossed the finish line. I had run the Chicago Marathon.

As special as finishing my first marathon was, I anticipate an even greater finish in “the race God has set before” me. In this one, together with all Christians, we keep “our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2). Crossing that finish line will be glorious!

Michael

Think It Through

1. What examples of impatience can you remember from your childhood? What event(s) did you find it most difficult to wait for?

2. At what times have you had to be patient for something that you discovered was definitely worth the wait?

3. Besides running, what else has taught you to be patient? Why is trusting God so difficult during tough times?

4. What do you sense God telling you to patiently wait for?

On Running

Why is self-confidence so important for runners?

Self-confidence is the belief that you can successfully perform a desired behavior. This attitude has a number of benefits. Your confidence helps arouse positive emotions, causing you to react more positively to adversity. Confidence improves concentration, increases effort (be sure to set challenging goals), and intimidates the opponent. Most important, you are more relaxed and have more fun!