Volume 28, No. 41
November 2, 2003                   

Going the Distance

   Runners call the marathon the Horizontal Everest, and with good reason. Pushing your body to go 26.2 miles or 42k takes training and mental toughness.  I learned the hard way last weekend, running my first marathon at age 49.

   The event takes its name from a battle in 490 B.C. on the plain of Marathon in Greece.  Badly outnumbered by the invading Persians, the Greeks sent a runner named Pheidippides on a 300-mile round trip to Sparta to get help.  When the Spartans refused to come during a religious feast, Pheidippides ran back and discovered the Persians had already been beaten and were escaping by boat towards Athens.

   Since the Athenians didn’t know the Persians had been defeated, there was concern the city would surrender to the invaders.  So Pheidippides was sent to run the 25 miles — 40k — between Marathon and Athens.  Having already gone 300 miles, he arrived, collapsed  and died, but not before gasping, “Rejoice, we conquer!”

   When the modern Olympics were revived in 1896, the marathon was a key event.  The distance was standardized at 26 miles or 42k in 1908 during the London Olympics when organizers extended the run slightly so it could start at Windsor Castle and end in front of King Edward’s royal box at the stadium.

   In much the same way, a life of faith is a marathon, not a sprint, which begins and ends in the presence of the King.  The first goal is to finish. “Spend your time and energy in training yourself for spiritual fitness,” writes Paul, for it “promises a reward both in this life and the next.” (1 Tim. 4:8). Just as no runner tries 26 miles without building up some base conditioning with slow, short runs that increase no more than ten percent each week, there are no shortcuts to heaven.  It takes time, effort and consistent commitment.

   In my case, a 15-week program got me into top physical shape.  But I knew as I finished the big run that it was the culmination of years spent doing much shorter distances, night after night. In life,too, it’s faithfulness in the small things that prepares us for the grueling experiences that will test our true character in the long haul.

   Spiritual conditioning also means proper nutrition, feeding our spirits with a healthy diet of scripture, complete with the company and encouragement of other Christians.  We need Holy Spirit hydration that lets the Living Water keep our souls lubricated for the work ahead.  And we need rest, the most neglected element in our training routine.  Just as a distance runner alternates hard and easy runs that push the muscles then let them rest and repair, we must be careful not to overtax ourselves physically, emotionally or spiritually.   

   Marathoners who start too fast often can’t finish.  It’s the same when living out our faith.  We have to pace ourselves.  While there’s no time to stop and gawk at the distractions along the way, neither should we try to run faster than we’re able.  That pacing is especially important because faith doesn’t get easier as you grow older.  Just like the marathon in which the last six miles are as tough as the first 20 put together, victorious living takes strength and stamina.

   Even then, setbacks are inevitable.  Three hours into my run, a leg cramp brought me to a standstill and I thought I was done. Thankfully, the problem passed, just as sin and discouragement will when you vow that giving up is just not an option.

   That determination will come easier with help from the people you love.  Since running has always been a solitary thing for me, I ran my 42k alone in the middle of the night, despite warnings I’d need the encouragement of a marathon crowd in the final stretch.  Just as I hit “the wall”, there was my wife Susan, jumping up and down in the pouring rain with a cardboard sign reading, “Go, Rick, Go!”  She was there at the finish line, too.  There was no stopping me.

   The One who loves you is waiting at the end of the race, and you will get there.  “Rejoice, we conquer!”  Though life is a grueling Horizontal Everest, victorious Christians finish on top of the world.

By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the Followers of Christ congregation in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.  Reprint at will in not-for-profit publications.  To subscribe, contact sgamble@bfree.on.ca