The Shoes We Wear

“…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” Hebrews 12:1

When my son was little, a trip to the shoe store was an event.  First we carefully picked out the perfect tennis shoe, with just the right color stripe or swoosh, and then the fun really began.  After trying on his preferred shoe, he took a run around the store.  Literally, he would run around the store at least twice to see if the shoes were fast enough.  In his mind the perfect shoe made him faster.  As he got older quickness took a back seat to distance. Now he tries on a shoe with only one question- “can I run a long time in this shoe?”  After years of trying to be fast, he realized that he was more of a long distance runner.  The only thing that is now important about the shoe is its endurance.  Some of us came to faith in Jesus like my son first picked out shoes; we were quick to make the decision to follow Him.  Some of us- even if we had the right equipment were a bit slower.  The important part is the endurance needed in the race.  Jesus doesn’t care if we’re fast or slow, but He does care that we're in the race, and that we finish that race.  Our Spiritual “shoes” don’t have to make us fast, they only have to last.  And, at the end of the race- a prize…a crown.

“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.”  1 Cor. 9:24-25