GET YOUR RUNNING SHOES READY!

Get Your Running Shoes Ready!

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.” 1 Corinthians 9:24

Get your running shoes ready for the race of a lifetime! God has given us a task to serve the people of First Baptist Canton and we need to be ready for the task. The scripture says that “everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training.”(1 Corinthians 9:25a) The game for us in the worship ministry is not merely a game but an awesome responsibility. The game He has given us is to serve by leading in worship every week. Is this a task that can be done on our own power? Is it a race that can be won by giving only part of our time and energy to the task? I think not! It is going to take a lot of commitment and work to be successful. For we do not “do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.” (1 Corinthians 9:25b) In 1 Peter 5:4, Peter reminds us that “when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will not fade away.” Our work is not the kind of work that will be burned up in the judgment (1 Corinthians 3:12-15) but is the kind of work which will pay dividends for eternity. Just think of all the lives that you will touch for God’s kingdom. We play a major role in helping people connect with a Holy God. As we do that, the only response the worshiper can have is a changed heart. I look forward to seeing the crown of glory and the lives that were changed by our work. Another aspect of our race is attitude. To quote Allan Taylor from last Sunday night: “We are one attitude away from greatness and one attitude away from disaster.” I do not want to do anything to disqualify me from the prize. A wrong attitude or wrong agenda will possibly do just that. I do not think that my attitude can disqualify my salvation but I do believe that it can disqualify me from all the reward the Lord has to offer me. Therefore, “Choose you this day who you will serve.”

Run in such a way as to get the prize!
Aaron Hodges