by Joanie Butman
You wouldn’t think running is a spectator sport, but on Marathon Sunday in New York City, the crowds come out in droves. I wouldn’t be there (NY is a logistical nightmare that day) unless my daughter was running, but NY residents feel a responsibility to attend for no other reason than to encourage runners, whether they know them or not.
Being a spectator at the NYC marathon requires a herculean effort of its own sort. By the end of the day, I felt like I had run a marathon, scurrying from one borough to another for a three-second sighting as Hannah sped by. We almost missed her at one spot. It’s a sad state of affairs when someone can run from Brooklyn to upper Manhattan faster than the subway gets you there. Service must have been better back when Rose Ruiz hopped on the subway and jumped back into the race near the finish line.
Rosie’s colossal chutzpah didn’t end there. Her time in the NY Marathon qualified her for the 1980 Boston Marathon, which she won using the same strategy. Her infamy is part comic relief at her audacity, along with righteous offense that she would accept the medal ahead of those that earned it through hard work and training. Rosie’s name became synonymous with cheating, birthing the phrase “pulling a Rosie.”
Life’s a marathon – the only one most of us will ever run. We’re all striving to finish well. How we run the course, however, is all about training. You can’t expect a stellar performance without adequate and difficult training. Nutrition is a vital element of that training. Peak performance can’t be achieved if your diet consists of junk food. The same can be said about spiritual fitness. You won’t be prepared for the hills of life if you’re not feeding your soul properly. Being in the Word is the best dietary program to build spiritual muscle. If you don’t train on a daily basis, the race is going to be harder. Any athlete will tell you, you have to put in the work if you want to succeed.
Additionally, the support and encouragement of other Christians can’t be underestimated. The cheers of the crowd at the marathon may be the impetus that energizes runners as their own begins to wane – not to mention the water, food, tissues, paper towels they provide. It’s a classic example of how the Body of Christ works. Christianity isn’t meant to be a solo endeavor. We are meant to be encouragers – coming alongside each other in praise, worship, prayer, play, in joy and in suffering. One of the most heart-warming stories from Sunday is the two men who stopped to carry a struggling runner over the finish. They were strangers who saw a need and filled it. Their compassion was more important than the clock. Without a doubt, one of the greatest blessings God bestows on us is each other.
Pulling a Rosie may appear to work temporarily, but there are no shortcuts when it comes to spirituality. People try, but God will call you out faster than Ms. Ruiz was outed after the Boston Marathon. As with most things in Christ’s Upside Down Kingdom, spiritual shortcuts only make the race longer and harder.
Considering the only course I’ve ever run is the one back and forth to the refrigerator, I can’t imagine why anyone would want to run 26.2 miles. In much the same way, I’m sure my own circuitous course selections in life have baffled many – including Jesus. As promised though, He never left me through all of it, but waited patiently as I found my way back to Him.
It’s true that Christ has done the heavy lifting to guarantee we finish well, but we have to choose to accept His sacrifice on our behalf. Our partnership with Him determines how we cross the finish line: being carried, running, crawling or diving into home face first. No matter how we do it, with Christ we’re always a winner. Don’t forego the laurel wreath Jesus has reserved for you through His sacrifice. Jesus guarantees our win, but we still have to run the race. I choose to run with Him as my coach, confident I can conquer the steepest hills with Him by my side. Who’s your coach?
Choose wisely!
*Rosie was a fraudster who was declared the winner in the female category for the 84th Boston Marathon in 1980, only to have her title stripped eight days after the race when it was discovered that she had not run the entire course. She is believed to have jumped onto the course about a half-mile before the finish. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosie_Ruiz)