I hated running track in high school.
I mean, I loved it and hated it. I loved it because I enjoyed running, and liked the the team. (Actually that’s not true; I just liked one boy on the team.) But I hated it because the pressure of doing an individual sport was so intense it practically made me sick at every track meet. I can still remember the dread and feeling of panic every time my event would come, when I’d step forward and hear those words: “On your mark …”. Unlike basketball, volleyball, and softball, this sport only depended on me. I was the only one running the 400 meter dash around that track. I couldn’t depend on a teammate or inwardly blame anyone else if we lost.
I wasn’t that great at it either. I was just good enough to run Varsity medium-length events like the 400m and short and long relays, but not fast enough to really excel at any of them. I was pretty much a steady mediocre. Which made running alone that much harder. There was never any glory. Never any victory, never any time to shine. It was just me, all alone, running my tail off and always finishing right in the middle of the pack.
All that to say that as I’ve been watching the Olympic track events, all I can think about is how much courage it must take to step forward and compete for an event. All alone. Especially if you know you’ll never win. It’s not like men’s sand volleyball (Really, why is that an Olympic event?) where you can blend in and blame failures on someone else. When you step forward on your mark, it’s just you.
Any other wimps out there, like me?
My point is this: Sometimes God calls us out. He calls us out individually and summons us to step forward and we clearly hear His call: “On your mark …”
It’s at that moment I usually start to panic, cry, or look for a bathroom to escape. Or, like last night, I just fall on my face on my bedroom floor and pray for mercy because only He can give the strength to obey.
“On your mark…”
He calls us all to different things. My race might be the 400m and yours is a marathon. You might be called to a relay race and I might be called to run alone. But God is looking for men and women who will come forward and get on their marks. Who are willing to run alone. Who will obey Him in whatever weird or wild event He calls us to. To walk by faith. To take the first step. To enter the race.
Even if we know that particular race will never earn us any glory.
Some of us (yours truly) prefer to only enter events where we can excel. But God calls us to enter events where we might be guaranteed obscurity. We may never hear applause or wear a medal around our necks. We might just blend in with the pack. Or, we might even come in last place. But He wants us to run. To obey Him. To just do whatever it is He’s asking us to.
And only He knows what that is.
I believe there is something, even today, that God has been calling you to do. A step of faith. A response of obedience. And even now it comes to mind. Sure, you might have to do it alone. There’s a chance of failure. It might be scary. But, would you just do it? My simple prayer today is to obey His voice when we hear Him saying, “On your mark…”
Would you get alone with Him today and ask Him what it is He wants you to do? Thanks so much for running this race of faith with me. Have a great Monday; thanks for reading.