Run The Route

Run the Route

Race organizers lay out a route of the appropriate distance, from start to finish. But they consider much more than just the required distance. In designing the route, they look at the race from a number of perspectives: the community (how it will affect traffic, businesses, and so forth); the spectators (their ability to see runners and get from one point to another along the course); race necessities (the availability of parking at the start and finish, placement of aid stations, shuttles between start and finish, huge crowds at the start and finish, room for first-aid tents, sponsors’ booths at the finish); and of course, the runners (fair course—wide enough with no potholes, interesting sites, some challenges).

The goal for any runner should be to run the entire course in the desired time. Certainly, runners would like to win or place high, if not in the entire race, at least in their age group. But most are pleased when they set a personal record (PR). Whether the race is a 5K or a marathon, runners learn much about themselves as they draw on their emotional, mental, and physical reserves; push themselves to the limit; and persevere.

As we run life’s race, we have the same experience, especially when we have to draw on our spiritual reserves. We discover truths about ourselves and God as we learn to rely on him and his strength. That was Paul’s prayer for his Christian brothers and sisters in Ephesus (we also looked at a portion of this passage in Week 1):

When I think of all this, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. (Ephesians 3:14-19)

We begin to understand God’s love and power as we run the route he has marked out for us.

The Runner

Have you heard the story about Rosie Ruiz? On April 21, 1980, she seemed to have recorded the fastest time ever for a woman in the Boston Marathon when she crossed the finish line at 2:31:56. Race officials were suspicious, however, because she didn’t seem very tired after such a grueling race. More important, no one could recall seeing Rosie during the race, and she certainly would have stood out if she had been one of the leading women runners. But several spotters at various checkpoints didn’t remember seeing her in the first group of women. She also didn’t appear in any pictures or video footage.

Then two Harvard students said they remembered seeing Ruiz jump out of a crowd of spectators, half a mile from the finish. So she hadn’t run the entire course—just the last half mile.

A bit later, a woman said she had met Ruiz on the subway during the New York City Marathon and had walked with her from the subway to the race. She had lost touch with Ruiz after that but came forward when she heard of Ruiz’s dubious Boston win. According to this woman, they had walked to the finishing area, where Ruiz had said she was an injured runner. Her time for the New York City Marathon had qualified her for Boston.

Today, Rosie Ruiz is remembered as a cheater. She took a shortcut to the finish (in both races) and was disqualified and disgraced.

The Race

Rosie wasn’t concerned about actually persevering and completing a marathon, about achieving an earned PR, or about learning life lessons. Her goal was to win and to be recognized for a fast time in the race. So she took a shortcut; she cheated and was disqualified.

Shortcuts are tempting. Some take them in classes, cheating on tests. Some do this in manufacturing and sell inferior products. Some even take this approach in relationships. Though they may seem to win at first, eventually they are disqualified; they lose.

Paul took this truth about shortcuts seriously. We looked at this passage in Week 4, but listen again to what he says about being disciplined in life: “I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). Paul didn’t want to be a hypocrite, urging others to live one way while he didn’t live that way himself. No shortcuts for Paul . . . and no disqualification. He ran the route God had set before him.

The Result

Unfortunately, some people who claim to follow Christ just want to be known as being “spiritual.” They talk a good game and make public their devotional life, service projects, and financial donations, but their lifestyle is phony, superficial. They have substituted devotion to self and personal glory for devotion to Christ.

The spiritual life has no shortcuts. But that’s what’s so great about it. As we run God’s route for us, around corners, avoiding obstacles, over hills, in valleys, and in difficult conditions, we grow deeper and stronger and learn to depend on him.

My Story

My sister and I knew the day would be wet before it even began. We were running our third half marathon together, my second time on this course. The rain poured as we waited in traffic to get into the parking lot. While we were stopped, we put on our shoes and numbers because it was getting dangerously close to race time. We finally pulled into the lot ten minutes after the start and hustled out of the car.

To warm up, we jogged to the start line. As we crossed an empty parking lot, wondering why we couldn’t have parked there, we ended up in almost knee-deep water, thankful that our timing chips were on our numbers and not on our shoes. It didn’t feel like a race at all as we crossed the start line with no one else even in sight.

Because we were running into the wind and rain was pelting our faces, we spent most of the first few miles looking at the road just in front of our feet. We started to catch up to some runners near the end of the second mile. We turned one corner and were hit with such a blast of wind that it felt as if we had to lean forty-five degrees to keep from blowing over. Each time I picked up my right foot, the wind blew it into my left leg.

Before mile seven, we started to see runners coming back along the course. We were confused because we knew that wasn’t how the course was laid out. Then they turned us toward the finish line, explaining that the course had been changed. More and more runners were coming by. Finally one announced that the course had been closed and that everyone, even the full marathon runners, had to stop at ten miles.

As we finished, we felt cheated, having run only ten miles after not even getting to start with everyone. Heavy rains had fallen the whole time and showed no signs of stopping. To say that we were wet would be an understatement. Not a millimeter of us was dry.

We got our medals and headed for the bus line to get our ride back to the starting point and our car. I was glad to be warm and out of the rain and wind . . . or so I thought. Every time the bus turned right, I got poured on through the emergency exit in the roof! Well, that had to be as wet as I could get, right?

Not so fast! As we walked back to our vehicle, a passing car drove through a puddle and drenched us from the waist down. We found ourselves looking heavenward and asking, “Really? We weren’t wet enough yet?”

When we got back to my sister’s house, still feeling cheated that we had done all the training and hadn’t been able to run the whole race, we were met by her husband, who ushered us over to the computer to see pictures of all the flooding that was happening because of the storm. In the end I got to spend an extra day with my sister because the trains were canceled due to the tracks being underwater in places.

God did not keep us from getting wet, but he sure protected us throughout the storm! And he gave me a strange running adventure that I’ll never forget.

Katy

Think It Through

1. When have you seen someone cheat in an athletic contest? What do you think motivated him or her? What happened?

2. What kind of shortcuts are believers tempted to make in the Christian life? What makes them so appealing?

3. When has God’s route for your life seemed tough? What did you learn about yourself and about God by staying the course and running through those difficult times?

4. What can you do to make sure that you run the route God has laid out for you?

On Running

How can I reduce my anxiety?

First of all, you need to increase your personal awareness. What causes you to have anxiety? Which circumstances? How about the way you feel about yourself? Next, realize how these things intertwine. Become aware of your physical response to anxiety; for example, do you get butterflies before you compete? Develop a relaxation technique, and have someone help you grow your confidence. Finally, realize that fear is natural; you need to face your fears, or they will paralyze you.