The Olympics is a 2-week competition that brings together the best athletes from all over the world to see who is the best. A lot of these athletes have been training their whole lives for a chance to win a medal and represent their country. One of the main events is the marathon, a long-distance 26.2-mile race on foot. This is an event not for the faint-hearted. Those who take part in the marathon have been training their whole lives and are used to running long distances. Even with all the training, it is not an easy race to win by any means. For someone to have any chance to compete, let alone win in the marathon, very specific training is needed for a long time.

Paul compares the Christian life to a race in 1 Corinthians 9: 24-25 “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. 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.” Once we accept Jesus Christ into our lives, just like the marathon, we are in it for the long haul. There is a prize to be won at the end of it, a crown that lasts forever. Eternal life in Christ.

So if life in Christ is a marathon, how do you train for it? Isaiah 40:31 tells us how “but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” We have to continuously train ourselves to trust in God and to lean on Him for strength. We run our race by trusting in God’s word and his promises. The more we trust in him the more prepared we will be for the marathon that is called life.

Some of us have stopped trusting in God altogether and are just sitting on the sidelines. When we accepted Christ as our savior we got ourselves a personal coach for life. What happened after that? Did we ever go to our coach for training? Did we give up trusting in him when life got harder? James 1:12 says “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” So you have a choice to make, you can sit on the sidelines and be out of the race or you can persevere and get back into the race of life by trusting in Jesus again.