Finish the Race

A lot of people start off the Boston Marathon. Not everyone finishes it. I really believe that the way you finish a race is more important than how you start it. Actually, I've transitioned my metaphor to it's point: I'm talking about life. I've made a lot of mistakes in life but I've surrendered it to Christ, asking Him to work out the wrinkles.

Losing my parents early caused me to think about the end of my life. I decided that how I ended life was more important than how I started it. I have to run the race of life to get to the end and get there in better shape than I started.

What drove my thoughts to this end? I was reading the bible this morning and I have a hymn taped in the back of the bible: "Be Thou My Vision". It's a road map to me for life. It has more verses than I can count but there are traditionally four that we sing. The following are highlights that are important to me:

• "Naught be all else to me save what Thou art - Waking or sleeping Thy presence my light"
• "Be Thou my wisdom and Thou my true Word, I ever with Thee and Thou with me Lord, Thou my Great Father and I Thy true son, Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one"
• "Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise, Thou mine inheritance now and always, Thou and Thou only, first in my heart"
• "May I reach heaven's joys, O bright heaven's sun, Heart of my own heart, whatever befall - Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all"

If that's how I want my life to be remembered, then I need to keep striving towards that goal.