Even with this being the beginning of the year, I think it is essential to determine that we will finish well. So many of us have goals, aspirations, and dreams for this year, this season, our lives. To see those things become realities, we need to be committed. As we prepare ourselves to finish well, it’s good to understand our role in the preparation process and the role of God‘s presence in that process.
Being committed goes beyond believing God will do His part. It is obligating ourselves to do our parts.
When I was a senior in college, I went to a high school track meet to support my brother-in-law’s first year as the Mississippi School for the Blind track coach. When my sister and I arrived, he informed us that they were short guides for the runners. (They needed people to run alongside the visually impaired students during their events.) I volunteered and was paired with this petite and kind girl. This being my first time, I wanted to do a good job. Soon after starting, I could tell that she didn’t prepare to run this race. My goal changed from just guiding her across the track to setting the pace and getting her across the finish line at a decent time. Some of you all probably already know how these ended. I dragged her across the finish line, and she could barely stand up and wanted to collapse when we finished. I did not allow her to finish well. I pushed beyond her limits and what she had trained for. Unfortunately, I was not a good guide.
God is not like that. He will not drag us across the finish line. He is not going to take over and set the pace. If we do not choose to put one foot in front of the other, we will not progress in the process. It is more important to God that we finish well than just getting us to the finish line. We must be committed to the training, growing, developing, strengthening, and learning process of life to run our race at a good pace and endure. God will not drag us, but He will coach us and help to prepare us for where we are trying to go and what we are trying to achieve. He will not set the pace, but He will encourage and guides us across the terrain and the turns and curves in life.
I would like to encourage you to set your goals and write what you will do to achieve them. What steps are you going to take? Will it be joining a class, reading a book, having a conversation, or creating a habit? We all have these visions, aspirations, and goals for this time in our lives. We have envisioned something, spoken it, written it down, and even possibly made a vision board about it. Now is when we prepare to see those things come to pass. Your dreams and God’s purpose for your life are worth the commitment to taking steps to finish well.