I like to swim.
Swimming is the only sport that I really enjoy, and because I enjoyed it, I spent most of my life on a swim team.
Now I’m not the most competitive person. I loved swimming, and I hated racing. It was too much pressure at the time.
But there were times when I loved to race: the races I knew I would win.
Because there were some times that we knew we were automatically the winners. The other team either didn’t have swimmers, or we were just better, and we knew it. So, no matter what, we knew we would win.
I loved those races. Do you know why? Because I knew I would win. The pressure was off. I swam and enjoyed it because I wasn’t so focused on winning because I already knew that I had won.
Isn’t that fantastic?
Now, on the swim team, we were told to push ourselves for our best times, even if we knew we would win because when you are in sports, you always want to do your best.
But what about life?
Friend, I’m here to tell you that we are meant to swim a race that has already been won.
You know Jesus won the race of life for you. He died for you, rose again for you, and conquered every enemy in this world just for you. Now all you have to do is…swim.
Forget about trying to get your best time. All we do is swim. We enjoy swimming in the race because we all that it has already been won.
Doesn’t that take the pressure right off? There’s no need to perform or to try to win because we have already won!
This doesn’t mean we do nothing in life. Rather, we fully enjoy it because we now know that no matter what is currently happening - we win.
You know sometimes, in a race, your competition may start really strong. They go all out, and they pull way ahead of you, and you can see them a lap ahead, but if they don’t have the stamina and the right pacing, they tire out quickly, and sure enough, you win.
Friend, maybe it looks like your competition is winning. Bills, stresses, worries, family problems - no worries. They may seem to be pulling ahead of you, but they can’t win because the race is already won, and it was won for you.
And if Jesus says that the gold medal is for you and you alone, nobody else is touching that thing.
I know this is sort of confusing. It doesn’t make much sense. The race of life is won? We don’t have to strive to succeed? To pull ahead?
Even if we don’t understand, let’s just believe it by faith.
Friend, you were meant to be a winner in life. And because of Jesus and everything that He did to you - you have already won.
All that’s left to do is to swim.
So let’s just believe it. Even if all you can believe is a little, just believe that little. Start with what you have. Jesus said all we need is mustard seed faith. Those things are tiny. They are small. So never feel bad if you feel like you don’t have enough faith. Truth is, it’s not even our faith anyway. It’s Jesus’. So friend, enjoy today knowing that Jesus has gone ahead of you, won the race, and is cheering you on holding onto that trophy for you.
Go get it.
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