Last weekend, again it was the joy of many aspiring athletes, who came and competed in the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore. And again we saw Kenyan runners continued their dominance at the 42km full marathon race. And saying to themselves: “We Finished Well!”
What about us who were not participants in such races? Whilst we are not able to have the same kind of joy as the marathon runners, we would like to echo to ourselves the aspiration and joyful thought of finishing well in our spiritual journey with our Lord Jesus Christ.
How can we compare the way of finishing well? Uniquely, whilst we are here, we will never see to finish well but will continue to strive and look forward in finishing well. The journey with Jesus Christ here does not seem to have an end of race tape awaiting for the runners.
Missionary Daniel Jesudason in his booklet, Finishing Well, said the following definition:
“While it is tempting to define our life’s work by visible and immediate results in the field, I would like to suggest that finishing well has more to do with how we live as believers, than it has to do with what we achieve (though that aspect is important as well). It is not about what we produce, but how we have lived in Christ and thus testify to His kindness and goodness.
Acts 20: 24 :“But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, in order that I may finish my course, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus Christ, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God”
Paul in the book of Acts, asserted that his ministry is to testify for the Lord Jesus Christ, as part of his life journey and course which he intends to fulfil. And so also our recent pulpit speaker, Jose Philips, reminded us that witnessing is not an option, but an obligation/responsibility.
As the year draws to a close, we would sincerely like to ask ourselves, how much of a race have we run for the Lord in 2013? We should not be too concern with how much, or what we have produce for God. But we should really ask ourselves; “How we have live in Christ this year?”. The race that we run, is one perhaps we still cannot see the end of the race tape as yet. We need to keep on going if we are to finish well! We need to seek the Lord each day to test our hearts, settle every issue before the Lord, so that our conscience is clear. And this is the only way, to ensure that our “spiritual hearts are strong and healthy” to run the endurance race together with God.
Heb 10-22: “Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water”.
May we all pray for ourselves, an assembly of people in Lorong Melayu, to present to God, a group of marathon runners, fit for the kingdom race!
Elder Andrew Lim