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I stand at the end of a half-marathon waiting for my daughter to come into view. It’s a fascinating place to be because each person completes their race differently. Some grit their teeth with determination. Others raise their arms in victory. Some slow down and savor the final steps. Others sprint wildly, flinging arms and legs forward.
The owner of a local running gear store stands right at the finish line and cheers loudly for each person. I’ve seen him other years too, and he always has an outlandish costume. He hollers things like, “You can do this!” and “Great job!” He knows many of the participants in the race because he’s trained them. For weeks a group has gathered to get ready. He has run alongside them. And now he watches for his people.
It makes me teary-eyed when I realize he cheers just as loudly for those who are struggling, exhausted and out of breath, as he does for those who stand tall and sprint strong. He never says, “You’re not doing good enough” or shouts “Get it together!” Instead he just keeps encouraging, keeps affirming, keeps being for those folks.
It makes me think of what it might be like when we cross the finish line of this life, when we see Jesus waiting for us at last, when we hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!” I sometimes picture Him with a look of disappointment or disapproval but He is our advocate and our coach. He has been in our shoes on this earth. He knows how hard it can be.
So “Let us run…fixing our eyes on Jesus” {Heb. 12:1-2}.
We fix our eyes on Jesus because we need to remember there is someone who believes we can do this. There is someone who offers us His strength. There is someone who is for us even on the days when we fall down and fail. In the moments when we don’t know if we can take another step. In the times when we feel weak and unsteady. He is still there. He is still cheering. Not because of who we are but because of who He is…and that will never change.
We will make it. We will finish our race. We will see His face. We will hear His words up close. Then we will celebrate the victory together–forever.
XOXO
Holley
p.s. I’m so proud of our daughter, Lovelle, for finishing another half-marathon! She has taught me a lot about perseverance and cheering others on. You can find her blog here. And this is a pic of our family after the race {as well as some random folks behind us-ha!}. 🙂
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Welcome to the Coffee for Your Heart weekly link-up! You’re an encourager so I’m asking you to pour out a little love with your words every Wednesday {link-up goes live at 5:30am CST}. Simply write an encouraging blog post and then share it here. Don’t have a blog? You can still write an encouraging comment. If you’re reading this by email, go to holleygerth.com to see all the fun and join in too.
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I’m having Coffee For Your Heart with my friend Holley Gerth
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