No Pain, No Gain!

Saturday afternoon our Youth and Young Adult Ministry had a cookout. After wondering whether my presence might stifle their fun, I decided I should probably make an appearance. Once arriving at the pinic and waiting for the food to finish cooking, someone brought out an official volleyball kit. Unfortunately, the last person to use the net did not store it in an official manner. The net was twisted and tangled to the point that it took nearly forty-five minutes and four of us to finally figure out how to unravel and set it up. Several times through the process I felt like cutting the thing up and tossing into the woods. To make things worse the owner of the volleyball kit, who obviously put it away last, kept asking what was taking the three of us so long. Once he came to assist us, we paired up in two teams to unravel the net from each pole. That was all the motivation my competitive nature needed to figure out the maze of ropes and netting. And you guessed it; my two person team had our side completed first.

Once we finished eating and individuals became interested in playing volleyball, I set on the deck wanting to play but wondering whether my volleyball days were officially over. After finally convincing myself that volleyball is a spectator sport for fifty year olds, my wife decided that she was going to play--bad knees and all. I’m still not sure what made her think that she was still capable of playing volleyball. It wasn’t the punch, because there was no punch for someone to spike. However, it actually only took about five minutes for whatever it was to wear off and for her to realize--‘girl, your ball playing days are over.’

Well, I’m sure I don’t have to tell who she called to come in as her replacement. And I proudly trotted towards the field, emptied my pockets of keys and a cellphone, ticked off my sandals, and took my position on the second row. Here I am playing with preteens, teens, twenty and thirty year olds, and a couple of forty year olds. But clearly, I was the veteran on the field. At least once I heard someone on my team remind the other team that the pastor had to preach tomorrow. I suspected that they may have been deliberately keeping the ball away from me. Because no matter what position I rotated to the ball rarely came to me. But when it did, I did my best to support my team, because I was determined that if I was going to put my body at this kind of risk my team was going to win. This 51 year old was literally as good as some 15 year olds--at least in my mind I was.

My team did win our first game with 25 points; which is required for an official volleyball game. But when you’re 50 years old, the difference between 21 and 25 points seems like a lifetime. However, my team eventually lost the rematch. But I was smart enough to retire after the first game. And of course, I have convinced myself that my team lost the second game because of my retirement.

The infamous athlete’s motto is: “No pain, no gain.” And of course, I did leave the field with my share of pain: a bruised fingernail and a sore wrist. But surprisingly, I was more than able to preach a lively message the next morning. Yet it has always amazed me how much real athletes are willing to push themselves harder and longer and farther than the average person. While most of people protect themselves from any form of discomfort, athletes push themselves to the limits of their endurance. While most people remain satisfied with mediocre performance, athletes pay any price for excellence.

If an athlete can be motivated to make incredible sacrifices for an earthly reward, how much more ought Christians to strive for an eternal one? If an athlete will labor day after day and suffer excruciating pain in order to receive glory from others, how much harder ought we to work to hear our Lord say, “well done?” This week I encourage you to consider the following questions: Are you striving to bring your body into subjection for the glory of God? Are you training your mind to think godly thoughts rather than worldly thoughts? Are you disciplining your life in prayer and fasting? Are you studying God’s word diligently so that you are prepared to find answers to the challenges you face? Are you ready for the Spiritual Olympics or are you still playing Spiritual T-Ball; where no score is being officially kept?

You've all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You're after one that's gold eternally.

I don't know about you, but I'm running hard for the finish line. I'm giving it everything I've got. No sloppy living for me! I'm staying alert and in top condition. I'm not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself. --1 Corinthians 9:24-27 (The Message)