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“But I (Paul) do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” Acts 20:24 (ESV)

Don’t’ know if you’re like me or not but starting a project is easy. We get an idea.  We envision the end result and excitement motivates us.  We see progress as we move forward.  We gain momentum, but then the inevitable obstacle or delay stalls us.  Sometimes the obstacle is us.  We get sidetracked.  We get tired of pressing through.  Discipline fades as we allow excuses to mount.  Not exactly where we want to land is it?

Grand beginnings can easily fall flat if we fail to dig deep and persevere through. Putting off what we know we need to do never serves us well.  We’ve probably all landed there – the place where procrastination creeps in stealing away what we intended to finish – because we have plenty of time.

Sound familiar?

Don’t we often take this same stance in our daily living?  We want to finish well – we want to complete the race God has set before us.  We long to hear Him one day say, “Well done good and faithful servant.”  But in the mire of reality, our starting strong can waver if we allow our tendency to postpone today because we have plenty of time left in our tomorrows.

The secret to finishing well is truly dependent on where we are right now.  What steps are we taking today to strategically position us to finish our race strong?

While we might be tempted to cultivate a lengthy list of doing, God is more interested in our being – being in His presence.  Choosing to create margin in our schedules to simply sit at the feet of Jesus can be challenging for us doers. However, we must silence competing agendas and lean into the voice of God.  Quiet is an unfamiliar place for us, but it is the perfect setting to posture our hearts for deep reflection.  It’s the best time to ask God to reveal to us those things in our lives we need to change to align our paths with His, so we finish strong.

Savoring His word invites truth which when applied results in finishing well one day at a time.  Note to self here – perfection isn’t the same as finishing well.  Our imperfect human flesh will miss the mark often (self included).  Yet when we couple presence at His feet with a devoted heart to His truth, then God can do amazing things in our souls.  Putting into practice what we know about His truth is essential to finish our race.

Sweet friends let’s not assume we have tomorrow – let’s choose today to apply His word, enjoy His presence and stay on course.  Finishing well could be sooner than we ever thought.

“Father, You have given us everything we need to finish our race well – help us to release our excuses and stay on course with You.”

For His Glory

Janet Martin
TRBC Women’s Life