My Spiritual Walk as a Runner, Week 22

Warm Up: Luke 22:19, And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”
Stretching: Exodus 12:1-25
Run: There is a six-mile loop I enjoy running annually. It is a ‘benchmark’ run that gives me a snapshot picture of my fitness level every year. I suppose its something akin to the annual football game with the cousins. We play for fun and to see if we still ‘have what it takes’ after another year.
We should revisit benchmarks of our Christian walk regularly too: I need to remember the day of my salvation; I need to be reminded of the moment of my calling; I need to share my testimony. Baptisms and the Lord’s Supper are not just a witness to the world. They also remind us again of how God has faithfully intervened in our personal history. They are benchmarks in our spiritual timelines. The spiritual formation of Israel was filled with the notion of commemorative ‘benchmarks’ that were instituted to remind the nation of God’s sovereign hand in their history.   These celebrations and festivals in Israel’s calendar year were instituted by God to remind the people of his supernatural intervention. Jews were instructed to pass down the stories behind these events from generation to generation. This is certainly one of the reasons that the national fabric of Israel is so strong as evidenced through their survival despite great oppression and persecution. They are the only people group in the history of human kind that maintained their national identity despite Diaspora. Benchmarks reminded them (and us) of what God has done. “My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shieldand the hornof my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior— from violent people you save me.” (2 Samuel 22:3)
Cool Down: “Thank you for the way you displayed your power throughout the history of Israel. Through those stories we learned about your character and attributes. Like the Psalmist, I will cry out, “I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim your righteous deeds.” Thank you for the testimony you’ve given me and give me the courage and boldness to tell others the marvelous things you have done.” In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
“I have always loved running…it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.” – Jesse Owens, Olympian.
“Therefore, I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air.” 1 Corinthians 9:26.

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