1 CORINTHIANS 9:24
I knew I would regret it if I didn’t play basketball this year, because it’s my senior year of high school. It feels like this is my last year to really enjoy life without a lot of the responsibilities of adulthood. So I decided to play. I came to basketball practice excited and ready to start the season, only practice was not very pleasant. Basketball means running and sprinting, and I was out of shape! In the middle of running wind sprints, I had to rush out the gym door to … well … puke. To play a sport well you have to be determined and dedicated to practice. To play basketball, you must be able to run, and run hard. You have to push your body, and when you feel your legs cannot take another stride, your mind has to tell them they must. Following Christ is a lot like this. Paul writes of running a race and of striving to reach the goal. And our race is not a one-hundred-yard dash. It is a marathon. We must keep our eyes on the prize as we run. And like basketball practice, it will be hard. We are running towards the hope of heaven, and that is an incredible race to be in. So let’s train hard and run to win!
Rebecca Wilson, 18, Maranatha Christian Academy, Oakwood, GAz
I want to win this race, Lord. I want to be in heaven
with You. Please keep me on track to cross the finish line.