For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the course. I have kept the faith. From now on, there is stored up for me the crown of righteousness" 2 Timothy 4:6–8 WEB.

It was late evening, and we were having dinner with some friends of our family who happened to be avid runners. I had never met them before, but I understood the need for speed as I love racing anything. Whether it's cars, boats, motorcycles, airplanes, tractors, or lawnmowers, the question is, can we make it go faster?

They told us about the marathons they had competed in across the country. After telling us about their last 26-mile run in Boston, I learned how to make the husband very angry by using only three words, "Did you win?"

Apparently, that's a question you don't ask a marathon runner. The husband took it as a serious insult and looked at me as if I had slapped him across the face. He was Chinese, and after uttering some language I didn't understand and probably didn't want to, he explained that finishing a marathon is your win.

You compete against your own body, fatigue, the weather, and the clock. Everyone there has different bodies, skills, strengths, strides, and finishing a 26-mile marathon is considered a victory itself. When he finished his thirty-minute speech, I agreed.

As Christians, we are all in a marathon. Some people move faster than others, while some hold a slower pace. It doesn't matter how fast you move along. The goal is to stay the course and complete "your" race.

Your struggle is against your own body, its desires, weariness, and not against others. So take your time, set goals, and most importantly, if you fall, get back up. No one finishes a marathon by laying on their face. Get up and keep putting one foot in front of the other one, and you will complete this marathon well, just as Paul did. He fought the good fight. He finished the course.

"Therefore let us also, seeing we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1).

Prayer: Heavenly Father, please strengthen me today and make me steadfast in this race of life. Help me see the big picture and be in tune with what You are doing during my generation. Help me finish my race well. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!

Note: For those who would like to join us, today we will be hosting our RHM Live Online church service. This is a special time of interactive worship, prayer, fellowship and an inspiring message. All are welcome! The service starts at 10am EST. Here is the link to join: RHM Live. As always, if you have a prayer need, we are here for you! We and the prayer team are ready to lift you up at our private prayer page: RHM Prayer Network.