Well it’s been a while since you have heard from me last. So I thought it was about time to share with you all a little bit of what God has been dealing with me about. A  few weeks ago I was reading my Bible and I felt God speaking so very clear to me.

Have you ever felt in your life or walk with God like you just don’t know why your doing it anymore? Or maybe it seems as life and Ministry has just become routine? Well that’s how I was feeling… A little frustrated and aggrevated, no drive or motivation. I felt like I was in a slump. So I did what any young man would do… I sat around for 2 days doing nothing but watch ESPN and the History Channel. I would look at my Bible and it seemed as if it was calling me but I refused to pick it up. Finally after 2 days of Sportcenter and Hitler’s regime on the History channel I decided to pick it up.

I started to read and came across these scriptures:

1 Corinthians 9:24-27

24. Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25. All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27. 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.

When I began to read this I could Feel God Dealing with me so strong and speak so clear. So here is a few things that I feel helped me and maybe can help you.

In these scriptures the Author is using the metaphor of running in a race. 

Just the same we are all running many different races in our life. Life is like a relay race.

 One big race made up af many different smaller races such as…

  •  Family and Friends – Marriage, Children, Relatives and Co-laborers in the Ministry
  • Ministry – Leadership, Ministry Responsibilities and Church Schedules Disciples
  • Careers – Jobs, Bosses, Co-workers, Performance Demands, School and Schedule
  • Relationship with God – Out of all of these, this is the most important

 It is all of these races that make up the race of Life, and out of all of these there is none more important than your relationship with God! The problem is that many times as we run these races, we feel like we are running with the Bulls!!

In the city of Pamplona Spain, every year they have the festival of San Fermin and the annual “Running of the Bulls”. It is here that they have this eight day festival where on each of the eight days they release six bulls and six steers to run through the streets to the Arena while about 1,800 people run for their lives. (Why they do this? I have no idea)

This is a race that is filled with many challenges, opportunities and just as many dangers. Just the same as this race, the race of life and our walk with God is also filled with many challenges and dangers, but yet at the same time it is filled with so many opportunities!

But I believe that if we are going to be successful in this race, then we need to be a people that have the attitude and mentality that says…

“If I’m going to run this race, then I’m going to run to win!”

I have found five things that I believe we are going to need in order to be successful in this race.

      1.    Run with Disciplined Preparation – In order to win in any race or competition, there is always a time of training and preparation for that race or competition.

  • The word prepare means – to make ready, train, practice, equip with necessary tools, to take the necessary action, to put something into a state where it is fit for use or ready for action for a particular event or purpose.
  • To put somebody or yourself into a suitable physical and mental state to do or experience something!
  • In any competition it is always just as much if not more, about mental preparation, as it is physical preparation.

    2.      Run with the right Coaching staff – It is with and only with the right coaching staff, that we will be able to have the                right Disciplined preparation and training, that we need in order to compete and be successful in this race.

  •  It is your coaching staff that will provide you with the right motivation and inspiration for the race that is ahead. (Jesus and The Holy Spirit)
  • It is also your coaching staff that will provide for you the necessary tools that you need in order to train. (Pastor and Church Leadership)
  • It is your coaching staff that will provide for you the game plan for the competition ahead. (God and His Word)

God has already put the gameplan together for us. All we have to do is follow it!

The problem many times is we have surrounded ourselves with the wrong coaching staff, or we have failed to follow our gameplan and read our playbook! (Bible)

    3.    Run with a Purpose – If you have no purpose, then why are you running?

  •  There’re a lot of people today who are in this race, and yet they have no idea what they are doing there.
  • There are those that are running because everyone else is running. These are the ones that are always getting in the way and at times can become distractions to those that are really running with a purpose.
  • Then there are those who are running because they feel that they have to run. These are the ones that are always complaining… these are the ones that are always asking why “Why do I have to do this?” and “Why do I have to do that?” and “How come they don’t do that?” and say things like “Well I’m just here because I have to be.”

They do this not realizing that God has a purpose for them, and if they would just take the time to go back to #1 they just might find out that God has something really special for them!! They would find out that God has a Divine plan and purpose for their life… A life full of excitement, satisfaction and fulfillment! And yes times of ups and downs, good times and hard times, but they would be able to have the understanding, privilege and peace of mind knowing that they are in the perfect will of God and that their God is pleased with them!

     4.    Run with the Right Attitude – You have to run with the attitude that you are going to win!

  •  Whenever you are going to compete, you have to go into that competition in the right frame of mind. Remember we said earlier that in any competition, it is always just as much a mental competition as it is a physical competition.
  • You can’t go compete with a negative attitude. If you have a negative attitude, not only will you hinder yourself, but everyone else around you.
  • You can’t compete with a defeated attitude either. Not only can you not compete, but you definitely can’t win with that type of attitude… and most likely you probably won’t even finish the race with that type of attitude.

 We have to go into this race with right attitude… with the attitude of “I can finish this race” and not only am I gonna finish this race but

 “I’m gonna win this race”

And the reason why is because I have disciplined myself, I have prepared and trained for this race, I understand that God has a purpose for my life, He has called, He has equipped me and He has given me everything that I need to be successful in this Race! So not only do I run this Race… and not only I will finish this race

 But I Run To Win!!!

     5.    Run within the Boundaries and Rules of the race – If we do not run within the boundaries of the course and the rules of the race, we take the chance of being penalized or even disqualified from the race.

  • We must Run with Intgrity
  • We must Run with Character

 There’s a Proverb that says…

“He who walks in Integrity walks Securely”

The great thing about this race is that all you have to do is just finish in order to win!

So Run To WIN!!

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