226.2 miles or 9.27 seconds Just keep running, Just keep running

"So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up." Galatians 6:9

Dean Karnazes author of Ultra Marathon Man: Confessions of an All-Night Runner, as a long distance runner has ran 226.2 miles with only several stops of little more than a few minutes. His book, Ultra Marathon Man, describes some of his accomplishments such as running 200 miles in a little over 46 hours.

Jamaica's Asafa Powell holds the world record in the men's 100 meters at 9.77 seconds.

Very few people on the planet will ever run as long or as fast as Mr. Karnazes or Mr. Powell respectively but we all have the opportunity to do good. Doing good draws down strength and energy that you do not always have. Your Christian life may have you doing the same thing over and over again, like a man running more than two hundrend miles, or it may have you fulfilling short deadlines like a sprinter. Our faith can be refreshed by a promise, 'you will reap a harvest of blessing'. It is a conditional promise. "If you don't give up."

Some believers are uncomfortable with the idea of working for a 'harvest of blessing' but the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:24-25 encourages us with these words, "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.... They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever."

This 'harvest of blessing' has a this life application and a next life application, and it is about doing good. The hymn write Horatious Bonar said it with these words, "Go, labor on: spend, and be spent, Thy joy to do the Father’s will:
It is the way the Master went; Should not the servant tread it still?"

The blessing we recieve from the Lord are describe by the the Apostle Peter as "an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you."

So then my friend if you a tired or 'weary and feeling small', or if 'times are rough' or if 'your down and out and on the street' as described by Simon and Garfunkel, then remember that you are "surrounded by ... a great cloud of witnesses", and you can "throw off everything that hinders", then you can "run with perseverance the race marked out for you, and fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith." He, "for the joy set before him he endured the cross,...then he "sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. "Consider him who endured ... opposition, so that you do not "grow weary and lose heart". (Adapted from Hebrews 12 1-3)

Win a Fight not a Round Win a War not a Battle

“You should have struck the ground five or six times!” he exclaimed. “Then you would have beaten Aram until it was entirely destroyed. Now you will be victorious only three times.” 2 Kings 13:18

To the body! To his right! Here we go. Round two"... From the movie Rocky

Fighting is serious business and it takes passion. The Apostle Paul told the Philippians that he wanted them to "fight together for the faith" He told Timothy, his son in the faith, to fight with the words of prophecy he had received from others. Rocky Balboa is a fictional character who had the skills of a champion but a passion for his sport that made him a club fighter, "a bum" as his trainer Micky called him. Elisha was King Jehoash trainer. King Jehoash saw Elisha as a father, When Elisha was dieing the King said these words “My father! My father! I see the chariots and charioteers of Israel!” Elisha gave the King prophetic instructions on his death bed, grab the tools of war and hit something. "To the Body to The Right" Micky said to Rocky. "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds." 2 Corinthians 10:4 As you fight the fight of faith today. Hit the Enemy Hard and Hit Him Often." Fight like you want to win a war not just a battle.

What Are You Hungry For?

What Are You Hungry For?
Matthew 5:6

"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled." Matthew 5:6

The human body and mind is such that our appetites are driven by habit. Many years ago I had eliminated sugar from my diet. I did this because diabetes ran on both sides of my family. It was a wise decision, that I maintained for several years. In regards to your spiritual life what do you crave? Does your spirit long for the things of God? Does your soul feel starved when you don't spend time with your Bible? Has your soul thirsted for prayer? Has your body ached for a fast? Have you ever felt like you just had to bless someone material or you would just bust?
The Word of God, Pray, Fasting, Giving, these are the nutrients that feed a righteous life. Christian's who hunger for such things demonstrate that they are hungering and thirsting for righteousness. Jesus promises they will be filled! What will they be filled with? I would attest that they will be filled with more hunger and thirst. These are people that have the Bible close at hand. It is in their car, on their computer and on their phone and they redeem time in order to eat of the honey of the Word of God. These are people who sneak away for a moment or an hour of prayer. They are people who figure out how to get out of the house before a meal is served in order to feed on manna from heaven instead of chicken in the pot. They are people who give freely not letting their left hand know what their right hand is doing and in fact forget when they have loaned and when they have given. They have developed an appetite for giving that fills them and is a reward all by itself.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is inviting you to a banquet table. The menu includes secret Bible Study, secret prayer, private fasting and hidden generosity. What are you hungry for?