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Finish the Race
Friday, July 24, 2026 by Rick Stockwell
Finish the Race
READ 2 Timothy 4:1-8
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
- 2 Timothy 4:7 (NIV)
John Stephen Akhwari was a marathon runner representing Tanzania at the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. He was involved in a collision of athletes jockeying for position and fell to the ground, gashing his knee and dislocating it, and smashing his shoulder against the pavement. After receiving medical attention, he returned to the race. 18 of 75 runners pulled out of the competition, in part due to the high altitude, but Akhwari persevered and finished the race in last place, an hour after the winner. He was asked why he carried on, and his response went down in sporting history. “My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start the race,” he said. “They sent me 5,000 miles to finish the race.”
Likewise, God sent us onto this planet to complete the tasks he assigned to us before the creation of the world (Ephesians 2:10). We may encounter significant challenges along the way, and even face persecution (Matthew 5:10-12). In 1941, in the midst of World War II, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill proclaimed, "Never give in—never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense." God will not be pleased with us if we shirk back (Hebrews 10:28-39).
In the reading for today, the Apostle Paul, who was nearing the end of his life, declared that he had finished the race assigned to him by God and maintained his faith. While Paul elsewhere exhorts us to win the race (1 Corinthians 9:24-25), the more important thing is to finish it, and finish it well.
Photo: Unknown, Eric Pia Archives
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Don’t quit.
Prayer: Father in heaven, please help us complete the tasks you’ve assigned to us.
Prayer Focus: MARATHON RUNNERS
Rick Stockwell
Rick Stockwell retired from a career in information technology, teaches Sunday school for first graders, served as an elder at his church, has been married for thirty-six years, and has two children and six grandchildren.
Rick is the author of two novels in his Heavenly Realms series called The Wall and The Battle. Audio, eBook and paperback versions are accessible via this link: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B07HQ8G3MJ
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