Speech at the Finish Line

Before the run...

Brenda and I completed the San Diego Half Marathon last Sunday! My goal had been to finish in 2 hours, but unfortunately, my left knee began hurting around mile 11, so I had to slow it down and finished in 2 hours, 11 minutes. Since I was nowhere near winning, I didn't have to give any speeches, and didn't win the prize. But we did each get a finishers medal, and more than that, had a sense of accomplishment in finishing the race after all the training and discipline of the previous months.

Finishers medal awarded at the SD
Half Marathon. Two hang in our home now -
one for Brenda, and one for me!

Some day each of us will finish a bigger race - the race of life. When you get close, what will you say at your finish-line speech? I know, not the kind of thing your really want to be thinking about! But sometimes a little reflection on the end can help you make the mid-course corrections now so that you'll end up in the place you want to be.

In 2 Timothy 4:6, the Apostle Paul states that "The time of my death is near."  Then he went on to say with confidence that he was ending well:

"I have fought a good fight."

"I have finished the race..."

"I have remained faithful."

Think of Paul's beginning (check out Acts 8:1-3 & 9:1-2; Saul = Paul), and how anti-Christ and anti-Christian he was. Then some thirty years after his conversion, after serving as an Apostle and planting churches throughout much of the Roman Empire, Paul could say that he completed the work that God called him to do. He went on to say that he was looking forward to receiving his reward from God - a "crown of righteousness" that would be awarded to him when Christ returned.  I think that Paul was a sports fan, because he frequently uses imagery from the games. Those who won in the competitions received a laurel wreath (which elsewhere he said faded away, but we receive an eternal crown...).

May I be able to say something similar to Paul when I reach the end of my life!  Here's a stab at what I would love to say:

"I have fought a good fight of the faith, standing strong against the schemes and fiery darts of the evil one. I've followed my father's example of being a man of the Word, reading it, memorizing it, meditating on it, and instructing others with it. I've been a loving and faithful husband, delighting in love and friendship with Brenda, one of the greatest blessings that God has given to me. I've set an example for my children and instructed them in the ways of the Lord and they are all serving the Lord today. I haven't pulled back from the serving God because of fear or timidity. I've willingly endured hardship for the Lord without complaining, but rather with a spirit of thanksgiving for being able to serve the Lord.  I've been a faithful man of integrity, choosing to live a life of honor and courage, even when others scoffed at me. I've carried out the calling that God placed on my life, and the Kingdom of God has been strengthened because I allowed God's Spirit to work through me."

What would you like to be able to say at the end of your life?

Is the path that you're on today leading you toward that destination?