Grit

I mentioned in my blog post a few weeks ago that Jamie and I are coaching the cross country team at her high school. We are now near the end of the season. District finals were yesterday.

At the beginning of the season we had 19 students sign up to join the team. Because some students felt anxious about competing, in the effort to make it low pressure and enjoyable for them, we told the team that the actual meets were optional. They did not have to race if they didn't want to.

What was supposed to be a kindness for a few students when their anxiety was high ended up becoming an easy out for those days any student didn't feel like running. It's raining, so I'm not going to run today. I'm tired, so I'm not going to run today. My friends want to hang out, so I'm not going to run today.

At our last meet before finals, only seven students ran.

In fairness, not every student took the easy out. And some reasons for not participating were valid (e.g. schedule conflict with another sport, extra tutoring after school). Also, some students (even some of those feeling anxious) ran even when they didn't want to or conditions were not ideal.

But Jamie and I quickly discovered that if we gave the runners an easy out, many would take it, even when they didn't need it. As a result, they robbed themselves of one of the greatest benefits of running: grit.

Running takes grit, which means one of the character benefits of regular running and training is it helps to instill discipline and perseverance in the athlete.

I bring this up because of the strong correlation to our spiritual walk with Jesus. There are many running metaphors in the New Testament (e.g. 1 Corinthians 9:24; 2 Timothy 4:7; Hebrews 12:1), but I am particularly drawn to Jude's call to persevere:

Dear friends, keep building on the foundation of your most holy faith, as the Holy Spirit helps you to pray. And keep in step with God’s love, as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to show how kind he is by giving you eternal life.
~ Jude 20-21

If I were to summarize this into a few words, I would say, "Dear friends, keep going."

Never once does Jesus promise that following him would be easy. Never once does he say it won't require strength and grit. And never once does he give his followers an easy out.

In fact, he says just the opposite. Rather than an easy out, following Jesus will require genuine sacrifice. In fact, for some, it will require their very life. But for all who do it, following Jesus results in being fully alive, now and forever. So Jesus say to you "dear followers, keep going."

PAUSE and REFLECT: We all encounter times of difficulty or struggle. Where do you need to "keep going" today?

Jesus directs you one way, the current of the world directs you another. Don't look for the easy out. Keep going.

You've committed to remain faithful to Jesus, but so many other enticing treasures cry out for your heart. Don't look for the easy out. Keep going.

You're facing big questions and unknowns in life and are tempted to take the path of least resistance. Don't look for the easy out. Keep going.

If you are a follower of Jesus, you are right now "running the race." God is your biggest cheerleader, and he fills you with his Spirit that you may run and not be weary, walk and not faint. You have it in you to complete the race, because the Holy Spirit is in you. So keep going.

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Photo by Isaac Wendland on Unsplash