Main Street Baptist Church

(Friday, August 22, 2008) I like to run alone and usually do. I enjoy being free to go my own pace & direction while letting my thoughts drift wherever they want to go. I am more creative when in my right brain and cherish those special times. However other times its best for me to run with someone else. They can set a better pace and motivate me to keep going when I would slow down. Talking while running can distract from the distance or discomfort of running. Jogging with my wife is especially enjoyable. Running with a friend can make the time go quicker, the load seem easier, the burden can be shared and the time used for encouragement and edification.

In life, too, I usually ‘run’ alone. That’s the way I’m made. But there is a time when I need others to ‘run’ alongside. I need those who can set a better pace and be a good example for me, who can encourage and train me (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12). Other times I need to invite a younger ‘runner’ into my life to help them get started (1 Corinthians 4:16). I need to help guide them as they run the Christian race.

Always I need to have Jesus with me as I travel through life. In the 1960’s Malcom Boyd wrote a book entitled “Are You Running With Me Jesus?” Inviting Jesus to run with us isn’t the best way to do it, though. We should follow His lead and run with Him wherever He goes (Mark 2:14). He should be setting the pace and choosing the direction for every step I take throughout life.

Are you more of a loner? That’s OK – but there are times when you need others and when others need you. Don’t miss those times! Are you a people person? Good, people can benefit from your lead, but other times you need to set the pace instead of following. Make sure you correctly discern one from the other. No matter if you prefer to run through life alone or with others make sure you run with Jesus every step of the way through every day. That’s the best way to progress through life.