Half Way There!

“The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD. All the ways of a man are clean in his own sight, but the LORD weighs the motives. Commit our works to the LORD and your plans will be established. Proverbs 16:1-3

When I was in High School I ran track. I ran the 880 Relay and the 2 mile run. Of course, you had to practice and prepare before each meet so that you had endurance to make it the entire distance. Often you would shed some pounds to lighten your load (literally), but practice prepared you for the race. I can remember when we were in the middle of a 2 mile run finishing lap 4 (A 2 Mile run was 8 laps around a 1/4 mile track) I could hear my coach yelling at me, “Marty, you are half way there. You’ve got this. Don’t slow down!” What encouragement!

I want to encourage you today! “Folks! You are half way there. You’ve got this. Don’t slow down!” Oh, what am I talking about, you might ask. LENT!

Back on the 10th of February, Ash Wednesday, I challenged you to examine yourself during this Lenten Season. Examine your heart, examine your motives, examine your ways, path, journey with God. I challenged you to read and study and mediate on God’s Word more than ever during these weeks of Lent. I gave many of you a Cross and asked that you place it somewhere where you would see it daily. I am here today telling you that you are HALF WAY THERE! The Lenten Season, believe it or not is about half over. We are now heading very quickly towards Good Friday and then Easter Sunday.

Some may be saying, “Oh, but wait Marty, I forgot. I haven’t been very faithful in my reading, my study, my worship, my mediating on God’s Word. I’ve not examined myself in the ways I should, because frankly, I like many of those ways I’m living too much to give them up.”

Take heart folks, the race is not over. At many track meets my coach would tell me half way through the race, “Marty, you’ve got to pick it up. You are lagging behind where you need to be. You can do this!”

It’s Ok, the race is not over. You can still do what Solomon challenges us to do in the proverb above. We can plan in our heart our motives, our paths of righteous, committing our works to the LORD. We can still examine ourselves and put aside those things the HOLY SPIRIT is telling us is slowing us down, weighing us down, causing us to live worldly instead of righteously. There is still time. You can do it. We are half way there.

And when you establish your plans under the will of God you will begin to hear the Father say in your ear, “Child, you’ve got this!”

I remember one track meet I had, the only one my dad was able to attend (he surprised me), I ran the best time I had ever run in the 2 mile run. In fact, that time qualified me to attend the State Meet that year. But here is the thing I remember. I remember each lap I ran hearing my father yelling, “GO MARTY! YOU CAN DO THIS!” What encouragement for me to push forward and honor my father in his presence.

Folks, in this journey of life, not just this Lenten Season, but in all of life, your heavenly Father is calling out to you, His son or daughter, and is saying, “GO!!! You can do this. Your journey is not over. Commit your going to Me and I will establish your plans. GO!!!”

How wonderful it is to know your heavenly Father is pulling for you. The Hebrews writer pens: “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith...” Hebrews 12:1-2a

So let me encourage you as you finish out this Lenten Season 2016 to finish strong. If you have been lax or “slow out of the gate,” it’s not too late. If you need to re-group, do so, and forge ahead. Every effort you place in your workout for God will benefit you in this run for the prize. PRIZE? Oh, yes, prize! When we finally do finish this race called life, our Father has the perfect prize for us, His children. One that will never end!!!

So folks, you are HALF WAY THERE! GO! DON’T GIVE UP! YOU CAN DO THIS!

Blessings my friends,
Pastor Marty.

Worship, Grow, Serve.