Finished The Race

I have written before about my church. I have some deep roots there...almost 15 years of membership!

Anyway, I digress, I wanted to tell you about Sunday's Children's Sermon.

Not many churches do this anymore, but our pastor still calls the kiddos down to the front for a 'sermonette' spoken in their language.

Pastor sits down and explains to the kids that it is almost Easter and so the next few weeks he will be talking to them about the events that surrounded Easter.

He starts by asking, "What things happened at the cross that hurt Jesus?"

The kids respond...

"The crown of thorns...

The nails...

The spear in his side...

The spitting, the name-calling, the casting of lots."

Pastor then asked, 'Do you think He knew things would hurt?"

Kids, "Yes."

Pastor: "Have you ever wondered why He did these things if they hurt?"

Kids: "Yes."

Pastor: "For 2 reasons: First, because He loved us and Secondly, because He had to finish the race. You see, you can't stop in the middle of a race, you must make it to the finish line and for Jesus, the finish line was the cross!"

Now, I don't know if the kids fully understood the impact of this message.

You see, our pastor has been going through a rough time and, much to the church's dismay, his days are numbered. He has no idea when he will leave this earth, but it has been said that he is already praying for our church's new pastor. But, instead of laying down his Bible, he feels an urgency to finish the race...it may hurt, but he will finish the race. He says he doesn't have time to rest on his laurels. He says that even on days he doesn't feel well, he can, and will, still pray...and on days he has strength, he will go about doing God's work.

Our pastor will leave a great legacy...of a man on fire for God!

I often ponder, would I live with such urgency if my days were numbered? Would I finish the race with strength and dignity or would I sit down before the finish line...feeling sorry for myself?

I hope the former...

but I am not so sure.

Finish the Race!