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Be a Real Winner
Reality TV shows are here to stay, judging from the number of people who passionately follow every episode. Obviously people enjoy watching ordinary people in extraordinary situations.
The real reality race however is the one that we are in - the race that we are exhorted to run with perseverance, our eyes fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3).
Paul had finished the race. But his finishing line was in prison. If we go by the standards of this world, Paul was a loser. Here he was, in a dark dungeon, lonely, cold, deserted and betrayed - a prisoner facing certain death. But didn't Paul once claim, 'When I am weak, then I am strong' (2 Corinthians 12:10)? And now he proves it by putting his whole confidence in God and drawing upon His strength to see him through his hour of trial. In God's eyes Paul was a winner (v 8)!
The reality is that we are running an endurance race, strewn with obstacles. The temptation to quit and take it easy, like Demas, is great (v 10). Thankfully wrong turns along the way do not disqualify us if we turn around as Mark did (v 11, Acts 15:37). And it is not the many tasks we accomplish nor the circumstances in which our life ends that get us into the heavenly kingdom. It is our steadfast faith in the Lord.
How are we faring in the real race of life?
Reality TV shows are here to stay, judging from the number of people who passionately follow every episode. Obviously people enjoy watching ordinary people in extraordinary situations.
The real reality race however is the one that we are in - the race that we are exhorted to run with perseverance, our eyes fixed on Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3).
Paul had finished the race. But his finishing line was in prison. If we go by the standards of this world, Paul was a loser. Here he was, in a dark dungeon, lonely, cold, deserted and betrayed - a prisoner facing certain death. But didn't Paul once claim, 'When I am weak, then I am strong' (2 Corinthians 12:10)? And now he proves it by putting his whole confidence in God and drawing upon His strength to see him through his hour of trial. In God's eyes Paul was a winner (v 8)!
The reality is that we are running an endurance race, strewn with obstacles. The temptation to quit and take it easy, like Demas, is great (v 10). Thankfully wrong turns along the way do not disqualify us if we turn around as Mark did (v 11, Acts 15:37). And it is not the many tasks we accomplish nor the circumstances in which our life ends that get us into the heavenly kingdom. It is our steadfast faith in the Lord.
How are we faring in the real race of life?
Scripture
About this Plan
These readings from Scripture Union Peninsular Malaysia are written from the thoughts and insights of Asian writers. Paul lays down the priorities and principles of leadership in the church, and for dealing with practical matters in church life. He emphasises the personal life and example of the leader, not methods or techniques, with himself as the role-model.
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