I have lived in a lot of different places. Each place had its own charms and challenges. I love where I live right now. Our street ends in a little park with lots of trees and a path that is almost like a secret passageway into another world. No matter when I leave my house or for what purpose, I see dog walkers, kids on bikes and skateboards and plenty of runners. 

The runners remind me of something I loved about my previous residence in Chicago. Every October, the street corner of where I lived became an official viewing site for the Chicago Marathon. The crowd would start forming early in the morning, ready for the runners to turn the corner and go flying past on their way through our neighborhood to the finish line. 

Well, the frontrunners flew past. After the elite runners went by, the pack started to thin out and get a little slower. And slower. And slower, until the last few competitors came wheezing by. I mean absolutely no disrespect to those last runners. I think I admire them the most because it’s a difficult and brave thing to even attempt to run that distance, let alone do it in front of an audience. As a viewer, I always stayed out on the corner until the last runner had passed by because I wanted to cheer them on so they would hopefully make it to the finish line.

The writer of the book of Hebrews uses marathon imagery to describe living as a Christian: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge cloud of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith” (Hebrews 12:1-2a). 

Is there anything you need to get rid of, because it’s only slowing you down as you try to follow Jesus? Are your eyes fixed firmly on Him? Wherever you are in your faith journey, keep going. I’m cheering for you!