On October 28th, I had the opportunity to run in the Marine Corp Marathon in Washington, D.C.. A very dear friend of our family, Wilton Lyles (pictured right) and I had been training throughout the summer—he in Colorado, I in South Carolina. For those of you who don’t know, the Lyles family was very instrumental in my coming to know the Lord. Wilton’s son John (pictured middle) and I are best friends and the Lyles have been kind of a second family to me growing up. While we were training, I told Wilton that I wasn’t going to lose to a 60 year old, but that turned out not to be the case. We both finished the grueling 26.2 mile race. I completed the race in 5 hours, 1 minute—about 6 minutes behind Wilton.
God has taught me many things over the last few months as I was in the process of training for this race. Specifically, he has been showing me the importance of discipline in my daily walk with Him. In order to train for a marathon, you have to discipline yourself to run on a daily basis. If you don’t, you will not be prepared when the race comes around. It is the same in our walk with the Lord. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 says:
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
As we transition towards life in Zambia, I’m seeing more and more the importance of being firmly rooted in my relationship with Christ. I know we will face situations that will be trying and the winds will be blowing harder than ever. Please pray for me in this area. Pray that I would develop habits that lead to Godliness. Pray that I would be a man who desires to be in God’s word on a daily basis and who prays without ceasing on all occasions. Pray that God would sanctify me through and through—that I would be the leader this family needs, the husband my wife desires, and the father who continually points his children back to Christ in both word and deed.
God has taught me many things over the last few months as I was in the process of training for this race. Specifically, he has been showing me the importance of discipline in my daily walk with Him. In order to train for a marathon, you have to discipline yourself to run on a daily basis. If you don’t, you will not be prepared when the race comes around. It is the same in our walk with the Lord. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 says:
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”
As we transition towards life in Zambia, I’m seeing more and more the importance of being firmly rooted in my relationship with Christ. I know we will face situations that will be trying and the winds will be blowing harder than ever. Please pray for me in this area. Pray that I would develop habits that lead to Godliness. Pray that I would be a man who desires to be in God’s word on a daily basis and who prays without ceasing on all occasions. Pray that God would sanctify me through and through—that I would be the leader this family needs, the husband my wife desires, and the father who continually points his children back to Christ in both word and deed.
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