Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. 1 Corinthians 9:24-27 NLT
Lately, I find myself asking this question when I hear news of death, “did this person finish right?” When life was still in their bodies; their hearts were still beating; and they were living with a sound mind, “were they running toward the eternal prize of life, or condemnation?” Apostle Paul saw the need to observe spiritual disciplines in order to win the spiritual prize. Alongside with living a life of prayer and fasting; renewing our mind daily with the Word of God, we must engage in preparations that are relentless, focused, determined, intentional, and with self-control. Otherwise, as apostle Paul states in verse 27, there is a great possibility we will find ourselves disqualified if we continue to live a life that disqualifies us from winning the eternal prize of life. “Therefore beloved, the end of the race is as important as the beginning. Finish strong, for your eternal life depends on it.”
The Word of God is Good Enough 