build showed signs that I too was destined for athletic domination and glory . I did well at the sports activities I participated in for recreation . They included swimming , table tennis and darts but these did not command much fame and glory like football and track and field events like the 100 metre sprint . The limelight looked great and I wanted to have some of it .
I reasoned that football wasn ’ t the sport I should try as it would take too much time to learn the skills and rules of the game but the 100 metre sprint was pretty straight forward . All that is required for the 100 metre sprint is that you get out of your blocks and run hard . Not complicated is it ? All this thought process was taking place amidst the buzz of the summer trials where students competed to make it into the final team that would be trained and equipped for the championships .
It was now just a day away from the 100 metre trials and I just knew I was an ideal candidate for this event as I had the height , strength and health for it . Furthermore , I did not grow up in the city where kids were confined to the four walls of their houses for extended periods . I came from the rural parts of the country where we had open fields to roam and explore all day long everyday . The kind of activities that bred health and fitness into youngsters . I was beginning to smell glory .
I would normally walk the approximately half mile home from where I got off the bus but considering that the following day was the trials I decided to run all the way . To add to my preparations when I got home I did some jogging on the spot and a few press ups . An evening ’ s run from the bus stop , I thought , would not hurt but might just add that little edge to my raw talent .
I will never forget the smell of that dirt track and the heat of that glaring sun as I knelt to begin the race on the day of the trials . I could hardly contain myself as the starter shouted “ On your marks , get set , go !” All eight of us scampered towards the finishing line like bulls on steroids . Within seconds it was all over and I finished a distant last .
I was gutted by the experience and struggled to come to grips with the results . How could someone as confident as I was fail so terribly ? The problem was that I greatly underestimated the pain and process involved in making a champion . The youthful naivety seen in the above story can be compared with the naivety of a great many Christians hoping for revival in our respective lands . Let me assure you , that a revival will not break out because of a single night ’ s prayer meeting , unless of course , that prayer meeting was the culmination of many years of prayer that went before .
Jesus explained that we must count the cost before becoming His disciples as the cost is greater than is required to become a champion athlete . I too would like to endorse the fact that if we would like to see the glory of the Lord we must be prepared to go the distance with prayer and fasting , spending time with God and joyfully enduring the painful process of growing up in Him . The glory of God is not a flash in the pan fix for bored , lazy Christians . The writer of Hebrews agrees , “ We do not want you to become lazy , but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised .” Hebrews 6:12 NIV
Some processes are slow but very rewarding . This world may be a very messed up place where good is called evil and evil good but truth will never change . One such truth is that good quality will always fetch a high price . The glory of God is not for the frivolous , impatient Christian . Hannah was a widow of eighty four years who wanted to see the glory of Israel and she did . Scripture records that she , “... did not depart from the temple , but served God with fastings and prayers night and day . And coming in that instant she gave thanks to the Lord , and spoke of Him to all those who looked for redemption in Jerusalem .” Luke 2:37-38
How soaked are you in the Son of God ’ s presence ? “ One swallow does not make a spring nor one hot day a summer ; nor will a few minutes of frantic praying before service bring out the tender buds or make the flowers to appear on the earth . The field must be soaked in sunshine over a long period before it will give forth its treasures . The Christian ’ s heart must be soaked in prayer before the true spiritual fruits begin to grow . As the field has learned to live intimately and sympathetically with the rain and the sunshine so must the Christian learn to live with God . We cannot in a brief time make up for the long neglect of God and things spiritual .” The Root of the Righteous – A . W . Tozer , pg 106
As I was surrounded by champions at my school so too in God ’ s family we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses who will testify to the fact that it takes great faith and endurance to achieve great spiritual heights and experience the glories of God . They did it and we can too . p
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