Beginnings: Running the Race Part 1

When you watch an Olympic gymnast during the balance beam competition and they fall off, they get right back on and complete their routine. When you begin that marathon, you have to finish it whether walking or running. When you begin washing a weeks worth of clothes, you have to complete the task by folding or hanging them up.

Whether there is a gold medal, pounds lost or a clean house to be achieved at the finish line, there was a beginning. At one point in time, that person decided that a race needed to be ran, a healthier body needed to be achieved or a closet needed its clothes put in (rather than being walked on in what I would call the "clean clothes mountain"). With every great finish there was always a beginning.

This is the place where whether the beginning was big or small, a decision was made. A decision was made to be fed up with the amount of weight gained. A decision was made to organize and clean an area of your house that needed attention. A decision was made to achieve a lifelong dream.

In just these few examples, we can learn and apply this idea to so many different areas in our life. Sometimes we need to stand up and realize we were made for more. We were created in God's image. We need to get fed up with anything in our lives or any sin that is keeping us from reaching our God-potential. We need to "..put off the old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness" Ephesians 4:22-24.

We need to make a decision to clean out areas of our life that keeps us stagnant or sedentary. Do not allow yourself to become paralyzed with fear. Fear of rejection can keep us from moving forward in God's will and keep us from blessings we could never have imagined. If only we had the FAITH to step out and answer the door when opportunities came our way. When we put our trust in God and allow Him to pave the way, we can be assured that nothing that comes along our path is too big for our God. In Proverbs 29:25 it says, "The fear of human opinion disables; trusting in God protects you from that" (MSG).

When we have a dream put into our hearts by our creator and we know there is a calling on our lives to fulfill that God-given destiny, we must also believe that God will give us the tools we need to acheive that dream. He knows the desires of our hearts and He knows the inner workings of our mind. He knows where we are and what it will take to get us to the finish line. We need to take each step by faith and trusting that God will take us in His arms when the road gets hard. Remember before the race is finished, goal achieved or ministry is brought to fruition, there is a beginning. What is God asking you to begin? Will you answer him with an obedient heart?