The Marathon

THE RACE IS NOT TO THE SWIFT (Eccl. 9:11)

BUT HE THAT ENDURETH TO THE END SHALL BE SAVED (Matt. 10:22)

The annual marathon was here again.  Many were the spectators who gathered close to the starting line to witness the beginning of this significant event in the church's calendar.  This was not just an ordinary marathon, where one simply ran, but it was a test of one's map reading skill as well as one's patient endurance.  There were many standing among the spectators who had participated successfully and were currently passing on their wealth of knowledge to those who valued such information.

Numerous were the obstacles in this, what might be called, a race of endurance.  There were steep hills to climb and muddy terrain to traverse.  There were pits and snares, not to mention forks and cross roads.  There were slippery down hill runs that required suitable foot wear.  What was particularly interesting about this marathon was that the organizers never chose the same route twice.  Those who had run several times before were yet unable to guess the route.

There is yet one additional intrigue to this race.  There were many top prizes.  Hence everyone who completed the race qualified for one of the top prizes.  Interestingly enough, the organizers never had to present more than ten prizes at any one time.

The race was now in its twentieth year.  The awards were going to be bigger and better.  Consequently, this attracted many competitors from the churches as well as not a few from among the communities surrounding the churches.  Previously only church members qualified, but during the last two occasions, the challenge was thrown out to anyone who was interested.

The competitors are under starter's orders.  There is a profound hush as the spectators eagerly await the shotgun blast that would galvanize the competitors into action.  The competitors numbering in the hundreds, perhaps three hundred or so, are on their mark.  They are so keyed up that the atmosphere is more akin to that of a hundred-metre dash.  No doubt many of them feel that those who are out of the blocks first will gain one of the prizes at the end of this gruelling race.  And so they present the picture of a spring wound to its tightest just waiting to be released.

 "On your mark! Set!" came the crystal clear voice of the starter.  This was followed by a loud bang accompanied by a cacophonous eruption of noise as the competitors sprung into action.  There was considerable pushing and struggling for the front spots as the younger and stronger runners tried to gain the ascendancy over the older competitors, three hundred in number bidding for the available top prizes.  No doubt many of them forgot that all they needed to do was simply to complete the course.   Well it could be really dangerous when we forget the wise man's counsel, "The race is not to the swift."  Matthew, the apostle, concluded, "but for those that endureth to the end."

The first part of the course was all smooth going.  Many of the athletes just "ate up the road."  Simon was among this group.  He was big and strong and he was fast.  At seventeen years, he was the 100 and 200 metre champion at his school.  These were his best events and he had not been defeated during his last five contests.  He had boasted that there was nothing or no one who could stop him from claiming one of the prizes.  He was heard to have said that he was sorry that there would not be a special prize for the person who finishes first.

Simon began to pull away from the main bunch.  At present, he had put over a hundred metres between himself and the nearest competitor.  "Winning this race was like taking candy from a baby," he thought.  "Wonder why my parents would not allow me to compete in this event before," he mused.  Well no use thinking about that now.  He had gotten his chance and he planned to be a "first time winner."  As the distance receded beneath his size fifteen feet, he thought, “I am fit, I feel real good man.”

For a period of three weeks preceding the races, sessions were held to provide valuable insights about the race.  These insights included such aspects as race equipment, race obstacles, race strategy and map reading skills.  Among the equipment runners needed was the map of the course.  This was given to every competitor just minutes before the start of the race.  The sessions were conducted by former marathon winners.  It was felt that these made the best instructors since their experience was one of success.  Needless to say, these sessions were very poorly attended.  As a result, very few competitors received the necessary information that was of paramount importance for a successful attempt of this event.

Nathaniel consulted his map for the third time.  He felt quietly confident.  Though this was his first attempt at this test of endurance, he felt as though he had actually competed in the event before.  There was a peculiar peace and calm about him.  Like Simon, he also was seventeen years.  He had a moderate measure of success in athletics, nothing to compare with Simon, however.  Nevertheless, he was aware that this fifteen hundred metres of smooth going was not the end of the race.  His familiarity with his map showed him that up ahead there were many obstacles as well as difficult terrain that would sap his energy and test his mental powers.  Though he could not see Simon or the lead bunch, he knew the race was far from over.  Like Simon, he had trained hard, but unlike Simon, he had attended the pre-race sessions.  Even now, he was not ashamed to be in the backpack, running with a number of older runners and competitive females.  As he ran he had some encouraging words for those with whom he ran.  "Don't despair," he counselled them, 'the winners enclosure’ is big enough for all of us.  Age or sex is not a significant factor here but a determination to compete and to complete."

Well, Simon and several others like himself were just revelling in these conditions.  Perhaps they had either forgotten or were not aware that the beginning of any marathon was the easiest part.  Any novice could begin fast.  But would just any novice last?  This certainly would not apply to Simon.    Simon may have been a novice to this race but he had a wealth of experience generally.  In addition, most of his contemporaries were of the opinion that he was naturally gifted.  He often boasted of it anyway.  A gifted person does not need pre-race sessions of instruction.  He doesn't need older people telling him how they had run the course successfully.  Which of them could boast of a record like his any way?  "Yes, yes," he thought, "I'll show them!"

Nathaniel, on the other hand remembered what his instructor had drilled in his head over and over.  "The race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong."  They pumped this in the minds of those who saw it necessary to attend, just eight in number.  'This race is not about the physically strong but the mentally strong.  It is not about the naturally quick but the patiently enduring."  It is not a test of genius but a test of courage."

The course map was an interesting piece of equipment.  It was not just an ordinary map but at certain points in fine print, there were words of encouragement and statements of counsel.  One could be so caught up merely with the course that one either totally ignored the counsel or paid scant attention to the same.  It was there on the map nevertheless.   What the competitors did with it was totally up to them.

Simon now knew the route probably better than anyone else.  From the moment he received his course map he started to memorize the course.  Halfway through, he knew every twist and turn, every climb, every slope and every cul-de-sac.  I might add here, there were several cul-de-sacs.  It was not unusual for a competitor to go along a path he thought was correct, only to find it ended in a cul-de-sac.  It was highly unlikely for this to happen to Simon.  He knew the course like no one else.  Well, so he thought.

By this time the field was well strung out.  The apparent strong far ahead, the not so strong some distance back and the others plodding along as if they were not aware they were contesting a race.  The audible grunts and groans of the competitors could now be heard.  There were gasps of anguish and mouthings of “What am I really doing in this race?”  Some remarked, "This is not a race, this is torture."  Some even questioned the wisdom of the coordinators for having chosen such a course.

Nathaniel drew out his map once again.  He had come to a fork in the course.  Here he read “I rested here and I drank.  Up ahead is steep and slippery ground.  I did not make it at the first attempt.  I tried and tried again.”  Nathaniel rested and many passed him by.  A friend rested with him.

Refreshed, they continued together.  The slippery climb was all that its previous conqueror said it would be.  Determination, courage and patience saw Nathaniel up and over.  He left many washed up competitors in his wake.  The climb was too much for them.  They chose to give up, concede defeat rather than to patiently try and try again.

Nathaniel came to a crossroads.  Withdrawing his map from his pocket, he read, “I paused here.  I took time to ponder my decision.  I was not rushed.  The easy way is not always the best way."  To the left of the crossroads was all down hill and the scenery was beautiful.  To the right was a level smooth road.  Just the kind of refreshing relief after the punishment they had already taken.  Straight ahead was swampy terrain, might I add, with several traps and snares.  To the right and left, he saw many competitors disappearing in the distance.  

Nathaniel chose to go straight ahead.  His friend accompanied him.  There was no one up ahead.  It was just Nathaniel and his friend.  There, right in the swamp, he spotted a path.  It was a path of stones.  As he stepped from one stone to the other, he recognized that "what is apparent is not always the reality" and so he continued steadfastly.  And right there with him was his friend.

Meanwhile, Simon was encountering all kinds of problems.  At the cross roads, he had chosen the right turn.  It had taken him along a smooth, level path at first, but suddenly he found himself meandering along some winding turns.

These turns and twists eventually took him into a network of paths.  "Now which one do I take?" he wondered.  "They all look so alike."  He decided on one but it just led him around and around.  He took out his map.  He had not looked at it for at least three hours.  He traced his finger along the path from the beginning of the course.  He realized that he had gone wrong at the crossroads.  'Should I have gone straight ahead?" he asked himself quizzically.  "But straight ahead was swamp land."  It was then that he saw the words in fine print, "The easy way is not always the best."  "Gosh!" he concluded, "I should have gone straight ahead."  It was too late however.  Here he was, caught in a maze, a maze from where he did not know the way.  In his moving around, he met with several others who had also become caught in the maze.  "There is a way that seemeth right to a man but the end..." His end was failure in this, his first marathon.  His lot was despair.  If ever he got out of this, how would he be able to face his friends, his fans or those whom he ridiculed?

The coordinators of the race left nothing to chance.  They had provided necessary rescue operations for those who for one reason or another needed such.  Simon would just have to wait until they came and got him as well as the others who took the easy path.  "Easy Street is often not Success Street."

Exiting from the swamp, Nathaniel encountered a steep and winding climb.  At the bottom he looked up.  Up there he saw quite a few competitors.  They lay or sat at the side of the path, their energy sapped and totally exhausted.  Their resolve was now gone and their determination nil.  Nathaniel withdrew his map.  He knew the way he must go but he was merely looking at the fine print.

"I too almost gave up here.  I would have missed the surprise up ahead.  Remember taking your time is not lazy."

Nathaniel came to the brow of the winding climb.  He had passed scores of runners on his ascent.  Every one he passed had strengthened his resolve.  Footsore and weary he cast his eye in the distance.  Not far away he spied a great crowd of spectators.  He dimly made out the words 'THE FINISH’.

With renewed determination and effort, Nathaniel trudged his way towards his goal.  As his tired feet crossed the finish line, a great cheer went up.  He was the fifth competitor to finish.  That was not a significant statistic to Nathaniel.  Like Paul, he had run a good race and had finished the course.  The gold was his.  "The race is certainly not to the swift nor the battle to the strong" but in Matthew's words "Those that endureth to the end."

When quizzed concerning the reason for his success, Nathaniel had this to say.

“I heeded the counsel of those who had successfully run before.  I constantly studied my map and I kept running with my friend.”

We really ought to consider these reasons and apply them if we would emulate Nathaniel's success.

WELL DONE NATHANIEL!

Stewart Russell © 1999