Ten years ago, I took part in my last 5K run. (I mostly walked!) It was during the Jonquil Jubilee in Gibsland.

An interesting thing happened to those participating in the run/walk. The race started and the runners shot out quickly, as runners will do. The walkers were not as quick off the starting blocks. As I looked down Main Street there were 5k green shirts wearing people gathered by the railroad tracks, stopped. The arms of the train signals had gone down. The train appeared very quickly. 

As the 5K was starting a train blocked the race. A freight train will slow you down every time. The race ground to a halt through no fault of the participants. I wondered if they would receive bonus points for waiting on the train. The train didn’t take long to go through town and the runners and walkers were off again on their race. The race stopped because the path was blocked.

During Lent we usually read about the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. In the Greek the word for devil is diabolos. The literal translation of that word is that which “throws across the path.” What if that metaphoric closed door, severe weather event, unplanned sickness or surgery, or train across the race route is a test to see what we do when something is “thrown across our path?” Will you complete the race of faith?

I think our faith would be much more vibrant if we stopped living by cross-stitched slogans and began living by the scriptural truth. I suppose I have seen too many children of God thrown off track by the train that cuts through the racecourse. We might call it a time of trial, temptation or suffering. What has been thrown across your path? Before you look for that other opened window, or detour off your path consider the words of the Apostle Paul:

“And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” Romans 5: 3-5 NRSV

Maybe you are called to stick to your guns, don’t detour or yield to the temptation of quitting but remain faithful as you “run with perseverance the race that is set before you.”

Staying on the course because the race is not over, is called being faithful.