I spent a moment on the mountaintop today. I always want it to last longer. But the air is thin up here, there is no level ground for the long haul, and the need is in the valley below. Still I never want to leave the mountain top when I enter into His presence where I am fully blinded by His glory, totally humbled by His love, completely overwhelmed by the reality of my sinfulness and the depth of His forgiveness, speechless in the presence of Him who knows my heart’s every word before it finds its way to my tongue, engulfed in the peace and beauty that are the province of the Creator of the universe, overtaken by inexpressible joy – tears fall freely as I fall face down in worship – only to discover my head is lifted to gaze upon His face. I never want to leave this place. I never want to leave the mountaintop.

I wonder if this is how Peter, James and John felt when Jesus took them up onto the mountain to pray one day? Moses and Elijah showed up unexpectedly and, well this is how the scene was described –

“As He (Jesus) was praying, the appearance of His face changed, and His clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. Two men, Moses and Elijah, appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. . . . a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, ‘This is My Son, whom I have chosen; listen to Him.’ ” (Luke 9:29-35)

Pretty life-changing experience for Peter, James and John, right? So what happened next? Well, verse thirty-six says – “When the voice had spoken, they found that Jesus was alone.” So things went right back to how they had been and they headed back down the mountain where normal everyday life awaited them. Their mountaintop moment was over, left behind as they entered once again into the mundane of the everyday.

Were the three disciples forever changed by their experience on the mountain? Luke 9:36 tells us, “The disciples kept this to themselves, and told no one at that time what they had seen.” How could they? Some things are just too wonderful for mere mortal’s words. They defy description. So the three remained silent. I wonder, as time passed, did they began to doubt the reality of their mountaintop encounter? Were they asking themselves, “Did it really happen? Was I really there?” Did the memory of the transfiguration they witnessed began to fade as earthly cares took precedence each day, until it seemed only a distant recollection -vague and devoid of the power it once possessed?

I think I know how they felt. Mountaintop moments change you forever. But then you come down the mountain and nothing has changed except that you don’t fit in, but you want to find a way to walk in this world without forgetting what the mountaintop taught even as its memory grows dimmer with each passing day. I can learn from Peter’s experience, though. Sometime later, after his mountaintop moment, Peter denied he knew Jesus three times to people who asked him. I am no different. By my actions and words, I often deny the transforming moments I have experienced in the presence of my Savior. And like Peter, I am filled with regret and remorse each time.

However, I take heart in knowing that Jesus forgave Peter and He forgives me too, when I ask. This knowledge gives me the courage to climb the mountain again and again in pursuit of a moment on the mountaintop, knowing I will not get to stay there long but that I will be welcomed in. Hebrews 4:14-16 tells me so,

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. . . . Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

The climb is long, all for just a moment on the mountaintop. And no matter how many moments there have been before – when I come into my Heavenly Father’s presence – my moment on the mountaintop – it is all brand new and like coming home simultaneously. He really is that Holy. I really am that sinful. And like Job I cry out –

“Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. . . . My ears had heard of You but now my eyes have seen You. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:3-6)

in that moment, I know that I am loved without limit or measure, I am loved beyond all reason or explanation – and so are you, dear readers, so are you.

sincerely, Grace Day

Last time I looked there were two-hundred fifty-four comments and counting in response to a devotional about rest which I read yesterday. This is probably three to four times the usual number of comments. Who knew “rest” was such a hot topic? But I discovered that it truly is a topic that touches a lot of lives. As I scrolled through the comments it didn’t take long for a common theme to emerge – we are all exhausted – we all feel like we are “running on empty” and we are all desperately desiring rest. At least that was my take-away from the comments I read and I easily identified with all the various situations and seasons of life that contribute to this phenomenon of perpetual weariness.

I am wondering if this weariness is just a western culture problem or is it something women around the world are experiencing, irregardless of country or culture? Could it be the result of our fast-paced way of life today? Were my grandmothers and my mom this tired all the time? I am trying to remember if rest was such a sought after commodity back then.

It occurs to me that there is a difference between physical fatigue and soul weariness. What I learned from the many comments I read was that I think for most of us the mental, emotional, soul/spiritual fatigue is what we suffer from much more than physical tiredness. Sleep can alleviate our physical tiredness, but we are left still seeking solutions for our elusive soul weariness.

Which is precisely what Jesus offers to each and every one of us when He says in Matthew 11:28-30 –

“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Jesus provides me with rest, so why do I so often feel fatigued? For me, the answer lies in these words Jesus spoke to His disciples,

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in Me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

No wonder I sometimes get so tired! I too often try to do things (bear fruit) in my own strength, (instead of letting God do the heavy lifting) and this leaves me exhausted and discouraged – like the branch which wearies, withers and weakens when not fully connected to the vine. Apart from the Vine, I am running on empty. I know I need to stop and get gas, but I don’t have time – time to spend hanging out with the Vine – actually time spent hanging onto the Vine. If I don’t stop and fill up my tank, I will stall out, I won’t be going anywhere. But when I am abiding in and connected to the Vine, I have a constant supply of everything I need to live this life that God has given me.

“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and goodness.” (2 Peter 1:3)

My Heavenly Father’s manna and mercies are new every morning. As long as I remain connected to Jesus, the life-giving, life-sustaining Vine, I am continuously filled up with His grace, love, forgiveness, compassion, peace, comfort, joy, light and so much more – so that I can serve Him by sharing with others all that He gives to me. In other words, I will bear much fruit, just like He said. As a branch on the Vine, I only began to weaken, wither and grow weary when my connection to the Vine is loosened or lost.

I never want to be apart from the Vine. Why would I? Jesus said,

“No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me.” (John 15:4

To a branch like me, the Vine is life itself – abundant life, so much more than I could think to ask or imagine. I never want to be a branch without a vine. Thank You, Jesus, that I can abide in You, the Vine, who sustains every branch – including me, giving me abundant life and rest for my soul every day.

“For in Him we live and move and have our being.” (Acts 17:28)

sincerely, Grace Day

I was pretty sure no one was – listening that is, to me. As a substitute teacher, I am somewhat used to this feeling that no one is paying attention to what I am saying. Actually, it is not just a feeling that I’m not being heard, it is a reality, an observable fact. Today, the noise level in the high school classroom assured me that they could not possibly hear me call their names for attendance purposes. Raising my voice would still not ensure I would be heard over the dozen or more of the class who were laughing and talking, well – let’s just say they were using their outdoor voices at full volume even though they were all seated right next to each other.

I guess none of them were feeling heard by their peers, so their voices continued to rise up over each other – each talking louder in an effort to command the group’s attention, which was constantly shifting as they continued to shout over each other. But that’s what we do when we aren’t heard, isn’t it? We turn up the volume of our voice. (commonly called shouting) It’s our natural instinct to get louder in our effort to be heard.

Unfortunately for the students, if they didn’t hear me call their name, they didn’t respond letting me know they were present. The result? They were erroneously marked absent. All because they didn’t bother to take the time to listen.

So now of course, I’m wondering – has God been calling my name? Is the noise all around me so loud that I would not hear His voice if He were? Like my students, do I refuse to turn the volume down, even long enough to listen for my name? Something else I notice about my students is that they often have earbuds or headphones in or over their ears, preventing them from hearing others’ attempts to engage them in conversation. They may feel isolated, but because of their own noise, they don’t realize others are calling their name.

I’m thinking this is how God must feel. He’s calling out to this lost world and we just aren’t listening.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” (Psalm 19:1-4)

But we don’t hear His message. We are too busy shouting at each other and over each other and listening to our own music and wisdom and ways – the noise of our TVs, radios, video games, social media platforms, (Facebook, tic-toc, twitter etc) fills our ears and our minds, leaving no room to receive any whispered words from God. Which brings me to another ironic twist.

God could just speak louder, couldn’t He? Isn’t His voice like roaring thunder? God could just shout louder than all the noise that surrounds me in this world. But that’s not how it happened with Elijah when he was in a cave on a mountain, wanting and waiting on a word from God. In 1 Kings 19:11-13, I read what took place,

“Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.”

The Creator of the universe could drown out all my noise by being the loudest voice by far. But He chooses to whisper to get my attention. I guess that’s why I need to be still (quiet) in order to know that He is God. (Psalm 46:10) Maybe when I am lamenting that God is silent, that is not the case at all. It is more likely that I don’t hear Him because I am not listening for His voice. I have my headphones on and my chosen noise turned up full volume. In my attempt to drown out the din of noise around me with noise of my own, I simply add another decibel to the noise level and turn a deaf ear to His still small voice.

After God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, they tended to turn a deaf ear to God as they wandered in the desert. Moses said these words to them,

“Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God!” (Deuteronomy 32:1-3)

I know my Heavenly Father hears me, I have His assurance on that. “Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.” (Jeremiah 29:12)

“I love the Lord, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.” (Psalm 116:1-2)

So my Heavenly Father listens to me, but do I listen for His words? (post – “the conversation of prayer”) Conversation is a two way street. I shouldn’t be doing all the talking. I find these instructive words in Proverbs 4:20-22 and in James 1:19,

“My son, pay attention to what I say; listen closely to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to a man’s whole body.”

“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,”

While I have been thinking God silent, I have failed to realize that I have not turned down the volume, taken out my ear buds, sought out a solitary spot and gotten still in anticipation of His whispered words to me. I have been too busy to listen well, or to listen at all. But now I want to say with Samuel,

“Speak, Lord, for Your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel 3:10)

I want to do what King David purposed to do in Psalm 62:5,

“Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in Him.”

Surely in the silence I will hear His whispered words guiding me in the way I should go –

“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’ ” (Isaiah 30:21)

my Heavenly Father is speaking, when I am quiet and listening, I will hear Him –

sincerely, Grace Day

yes, it is Monday all day today. And just for the record, it is also raining. So you know what song is playing in my head right now, don’t you? “Rainy days and Mondays always get me down” by the Carpenters, of course. At this point I should say, I’m not sure about the wisdom of listening to melancholy music when it is already kind of a melancholy day. Then again, Mondays have been much maligned ever since I can remember. I have yet to meet a person whose favorite day of the week is Monday. They have such a bad reputation – poor Mondays. They definitely could benefit from an image makeover.

I think for my grandma, Monday was laundry day – all day long. That would be enough to give Mondays a bad rep, laundry being one of the more mundane of all the mundane tasks, to be sure. Or maybe it’s that Monday is the first day of the school/work week for many – so not much to look forward to except more school/work at this point in the week.

Mondays are those days I am wanting a mountaintop experience, but I am in the valley surrounded by all the molehills I have made into mountains, which now need moving if I am to find my way out of this deep, dark place. Time to go mountain climbing, but I need a miracle. Miracles, however, require faith. Jesus taught His disciples about faith saying,

“I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Matthew 17:20)

That is a great encouragement to me, to know that even if I can only muster a small amount of faith (pun intended) Jesus can work with that to enable me to move my mountains. And there are days, mostly Mondays, when it is hard to muster the faith of even a mustard seed. But Jesus explains it this way to His disciples,

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.” (Matthew 13:31-32)

Mustard seed faith can move mountains! That truly is a miracle amid the mundane of a Monday, or of any day. As I start my mountain climb upwards toward the light, wanting my mountaintop moment, I become aware of many miracles amid this mundane Monday that have been surrounding me this whole day. Glad I opened my eyes to see them and give God thanks before this mundane Monday draws to a close.

Every moment is time spent in His presence, every moment an opportunity to be salt and light to someone who just might be in need of a little salt or a little light as they go about their mundane Monday. Lord, help me to see Your light in every raindrop that falls, bringing things to life after the death of winter. Help me to see Your many miracles taking place amid the mundane of yet another Monday, let me extend mercy to all, help my mustard seed faith to grow strong enough to move my mountains. Thank You, Heavenly Father, for mundane Mondays. Every day is a gift. Every day is filled with challenge and opportunity to be Your witness in this world. May I make the most of every mundane Monday.

“This is the day the Lord has made; let us (I will) rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)

“Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord.” (Psalm 150:6)

sincerely, Grace Day

Today I found myself thinking about these words of the late Jim Elliot, a missionary killed in 1956 in the jungle of Ecuador. “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” Those words remind me of a question Jesus put to His disciples when he asked them, “What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26) Jim Elliot had the answer to that question figured out at a young age. Jim Elliot was no fool.

He was only twenty-eight when he died but he had already chosen “that which he cannot lose.” Perhaps he had taken to heart these instructions of Jesus,

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21)

Sounds like Elliot realized this simple truth earlier than most, which is “you can’t take it with you.” And yet we live like we can often, dedicating ourselves to accumulating “wealth” – for what purpose? I now have to ask myself. Nothing here is guaranteed. It is all transient and temporary. On the other hand, what Elliot was referring to as “that which he cannot lose” is eternal. 1 Peter 1:3-4 gives us this assurance –

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade – kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.”

So, my inheritance is being kept in heaven for me and it will never “perish, spoil or fade.” This definitely seems like the wiser option to me, as it did to Jim Elliot. Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 4:18 also let me know I would be foolish to put my trust or my hope in the things or “riches” of this world. Why? because they are not going to stand the test of time. They are not going to last.

“So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.”

I don’t want to be a fool, an April fool, or any other kind. I don’t want to be thought of as foolish. Still, if I am thought “foolish” by the world’s standards, that might not be a bad thing. Consider these words,

“Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a “fool” so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God’s sight.” (1 Corinthians 3:18-19)

I guess that’s the key – not pursuing what the world calls wise, but seeking God’s wisdom. And He has promised to provide it.

“If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” (James 1:5)

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.” (Proverbs 1:7)

I wonder if there is a day set aside to celebrate wisdom? I know I am always in need of wise counsel, which I find daily in God’s word. God’s wisdom is available to me 24/7 and He never sleeps nor slumbers. These words from Proverbs remind me just how important Godly wisdom is.

“Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. . . . She is a tree of life to those who embrace her; those who lay hold of her will be blessed.” (Proverbs 3:13-18)

“to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen.” (Romans 16:27)

sincerely, Grace Day

I cannot count the stars, they are far too numerous – but I know the One who calls them each by name.

“He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.” (Psalm 147:4)

I can’t escape life’s storms – but I know the One who calms their chaos.

“He (Jesus) got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.” (Mark 4:39)

I often (being directionally challenged) don’t know the way – but I know the One who IS The Way.

“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.’ ” (John 14:6)

I often don’t know which path to take – but I have His promise that if I will,

“Trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding; in all my ways acknowledge Him,” that “He will direct my paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

I don’t know what tomorrow holds in store for me – but I know the One who holds tomorrow and is not surprised by what it will bring.

“I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come.” (Isaiah 46:10)

I don’t have sufficient wisdom and knowledge to meet the challenges I face every day – but I know the One who has all wisdom and knowledge.

“so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” (Colossians 2:2-3)

Sometimes, like Job, I don’t know where God is – but I know that God always knows where I am. I am never lost to Him.

“But if I go to the east, He is not there; if I go to the west, I do not find Him. When He is at work in the north, I do not see Him; when He turns to the south, I catch no glimpse of Him. But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold.” (Job 23:8-10)

Basically, there is not much I know for certain. But there is this one thing –

” . . . I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.” (2 Timothy 1:12)

and knowing this one thing is everything –

sincerely, Grace Day

I think that’s a pretty important job – the job of a hand holder, that is. It’s an old job too. By that I mean it’s been around for centuries. Aaron and Hur were hand holders once upon a time, and it changed the course of history. Technically, they were more like hand lifters, but let me explain by telling you the story. I read the account of what happened in Exodus 17. The Amalekites had attacked the Israelites and in response Moses sent Joshua and his army out to fight them. Our story continues,

“So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up – one on one side, one on the other – so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. . . . Moses built an altar and called it The Lord is my Banner. He said, ‘For hands were lifted up to the throne of the Lord.’ ” (Exodus 17:10-16)

“Aaron and Hur held his hands up” – so they both held and lifted Moses’s hands when Moses became too weak to keep his hands raised on his own. Aaron and Hur literally came along side Moses in his time of need. They were hand-holders, they were hand-lifters – they stayed at their posts with him until sunset. They stayed until the battle was won. This is the job of a hand-holder – to come alongside, to stay with, holding and lifting up the person who has the need. In this story, it was Moses.

In my story, it is friends, family, co-workers, neighbors or even strangers who need a hand-holder, and it is me who needs someone to hold and to lift my hands. Sometimes I have the job of the hand-holder, sometimes I am the one whose hands are held until the battle is won or the storm passes.

The lifting up of hands to God is not only significant in this story, I see it as something necessary for me to do every day. Throughout the Bible I read about others who lifted their hands to God, sometimes in praise, sometimes in petition. Psalm 134:2 tells me to –

“Lift up my hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.” Psalm 119:48 says,

“I lift up my hands to Your commands, which I love, and I meditate on Your decrees.” King David says in Psalm 63:4, these words to God,

“I will praise You as long as I live, and in Your name I will lift up my hands.”

I lift up my hands when I am praising Him, and I also lift my hands to God when I am crying out to Him in my pain or out of my desperate need. In Lamentations, I find these commands to lift up my hands to God. First in Lamentations 3:41 –

“Let us lift up our hearts and our hands to God in heaven,” and then in Lamentations 2:19 –

“Lift up your hands to Him for the lives of your children, who faint from hunger at the head of every street.” and in Psalms –

“Hear my cry for mercy as I call to You for help, as I lift up my hands toward Your Most Holy Place.” (Psalm 28:2) and –

“May my prayer be set before You like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.” (Psalm 141:2)

Then there come those times when, like Moses, I am too weary to lift up my hands to God, and He sends hand-holders, like Aaron and Hur, to come alongside me and hold up my hands. How grateful I am for those that do the job of a hand holder. What joy I feel when I get to do the job of a hand holder!

You may be wondering at this moment, just what this job looks like today. Am I on a hill somewhere, holding up someone’s hands as they cry out to God? Or am I crying out to God on their behalf? Now you’re getting close. The job of a hand holder today looks like prayer – because it is prayer. It is a special kind of prayer called intercession. Jesus is doing this very thing for me and for you, dear readers, twenty-four/seven as He sits at the right hand of the Father.

Jesus is doing the job of hand holder for me, so that I can do that job for anyone and everyone He brings to me, in order that I might come alongside of them and hold up their hands to God, just as Aaron and Hur did for Moses. When I am “on the job”, I might be physically present with my Moses of the moment, praying with them and for them. But most of my work as a hand-holder/lifter is done in secret, in the closet, the prayer closet. It is there, where, alone with my Heavenly Father, I lift up those I have been given to my Heavenly Father in prayer. And like Aaron and Hur, I keep lifting them up to the Father, for as long as it takes – until the storm passes, the battle is won, or until they regain their strength and are able to raise their hands on their own to God in praise and petition.

“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen.” (Matthew 6:6)

Talk about your remote work situation. Hand-holders have been working from home for years. And our assignments range from close family members to people we have never met to even our enemies. (that’s right, we are told to pray for or lift up our enemies to God – no getting around it) The physical battle between the Israelites the Amalekites was won that day by the Israelites because the hand-holders answered God’s call and did the job God asked them to do.

Today we are fighting spiritual battles and the need for hand-holders is huge. These are life and death battles, similar to the one Moses was watching over – but with one distinct difference. The physical battle brings with it the danger of physical death. But the spiritual battle is a fight for the eternal soul of every participant – so the stakes are much higher. Therefore, the call for us to be hand-holders for one another as we are all fighting spiritual battles, is an urgent call, a call that takes priority over everything else.

The job of a hand-holder is a sacred calling from God. Lord, strengthen me for the task, that I might hold up the hands of the weary to You in prayer, like Moses’s friends did for him, that his hands would be continually raised in acknowledgement of You as Sovereign God of all the universe. I lift my hands to You, even as I lift up to You in prayer all those for whom You call me to make intercession.

“I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer, without anger or disputing.” (1 Timothy 2:8)

“The mountains saw You and quaked; the downpour of waters swept by. The deep uttered forth its voice, it lifted high its hands.” (Habakkuk 3:10)

sincerely, Grace Day

If life is a journey or a race, then eventually we arrive at the “last leg” of that journey. And ironically, as any runner would tell you, by the time we get to the “last leg” of our race, we are usually on our “last legs” due to over exertion and fatigue setting in. So we end up running the last leg of our race literally on our last legs.

Now runners usually save something back for the end of the race, don’t they? They want to be able to finish strong. They want to be able to sprint that last leg of their race. But in life’s race how do we run our last leg of the race? In our culture we call the last leg retirement, a time when we are supposed to rest and take it easy. Seems kind of the opposite of sprinting the last leg in order to finish well. Paul talks about how I should run this life race I have been given in Philippians 3:12-14, when he says –

“Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect,” (in other words, my race isn’t over yet, I’m not at the finish line) “but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”

“pressing on, straining” this sounds like a runner sprinting toward the finish line of life to me. Why is the runner sprinting? “to win the prize” and because “he has been called” – he has been called to run the race well – I have been called to run this race well – Paul says this is the goal, to run well, to give it my all. I read in Hebrews 12:1-2,

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

So running this race will require me to persevere and I may need to lighten my load as I go, throwing off anything that keeps me from running well, anything that would keep me from sprinting as I run the last leg of my race. Runners sprint because they are eager to cross the finish line and obtain the promised reward that awaits them. The closer they get to the goal, the faster and harder they run.

Ironic that when we get to the last leg of our life’s race, we are physically at our weakest just when it is time to sprint. And there may be many runners who are reluctant to keep going, many who want to turn back, many who drag their feet rather than sprint to the finish line. Why? Could it be they don’t want to cross the finish line, don’t want the race to be over, thinking nothing awaits them on the other side of the finish line? But Paul believed something wonderful awaited him, “the prize for which God was calling him heavenward.” In fact in 1 Corinthians 2:9 I read,

“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love Him.”

I feel like I started this race at a crawl, literally. I soon learned to stand, then to walk, and then to run. But I didn’t always want to run. There is much along life’s race path that is alluring if not downright arresting. There is always something to distract and to divert me from moving forward. Then there are the burdens and the baggage I accumulate over the years, making my progress along the race route slower, more painful and more difficult. No wonder I sometimes come to a complete standstill, but even that doesn’t provide me the rest I desire. I guess that’s why perseverance is so necessary, without it I will never finish the race and receive the prize God gives to those who remain faithful and finish the race.

On the first leg of the race, when I first began, time passed slowly. I took my time, jogging leisurely, or even walking, often looking to the right and to the left. (there is much to distract) Any coach will tell the runner – “don’t look around, it will slow your progress. Keep your eyes focused forward.” I need to keep my eyes “fixed on Jesus” like the instruction in Hebrews says. Now time passes much too quickly and I find myself picking up the pace so as to dedicate myself to what remains of the “race marked out for me.”

As I enter this last leg of my race, I call to mind the instruction to “throw off everything that hinders me” even as I feel the overwhelming desire to sprint all out on this last leg of my life’s race. Suddenly nothing else seems to matter but Christ’s call to run this race well. I realize I am going to have to “cast all my cares upon Him” if I am going to be able to run well. These burdens are too heavy for me to carry, but Jesus has offered to take them from me and carry them for me. I need to give them up to Him. It’s called surrender.

What else hinders me? Unforgiveness, fear, pride, doubt, selfishness, old wounds that haven’t healed – I am told to throw them all off so that I can run this race with single-minded dedication, eyes fixed on Jesus. Funny, even as my body is wearing out, I am being transformed by the renewing of my mind, my heart is being cleansed, healed and strengthened and my spirit is being renewed and made right. It is as if I am receiving a new heart and a new spirit as I run the last leg of this earthly race. (Romans 12:2, Psalm 51:10, Ezekiel 18:31)

It is as if old desires and dreams have given way to the promise of what awaits at the finish line and I want nothing more than to sprint all out, arms pumping, heart pounding, feet pushing forward in wholehearted pursuit of the calling I have been given to finish well. As I run (sprint) this last leg of my race through all kinds of conditions – stormy weather, darkness, rocky roads, enemy attacks, jeers of the crowd, betrayal, deceptive road signs, injury, pain and loss, these words of Paul compel me to persevere –

” . . . the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day – and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8)

Every runner knows the last leg of the race is crucial to the race’s outcome. Somedays I can barely put one foot in front of the other and yet, in my heart, mind and spirit I am sprinting all out toward that finish line, these words keeping me company with every step and stride I take –

“He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)

sprinting my last leg of this race with faith, hope, courage and perseverance – eyes on Jesus at all times –

sincerely, Grace Day