United Church of God

Letter From Devin Schulz - February 1, 2019

Letter From Devin Schulz

February 1, 2019

One of the most compelling analogies used in scripture to describe our calling is that of running a race. While the analogy is used in several places my personal favorite is in 1 Corinthians 9:24-27. In that section, we are asked "Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it." The question that is evoked from this section is what is the most effective race strategy? In the world of long-distance running, racing tactics can become quite complex, but in principle there are three basic game plans. Of those three, one is by far the most effective. While there are limitations to any physical analogy, there are spiritual parallels that we can draw from them as well as lessons we learn from these tactics.

For instance, the first strategy can be referred to as "negative splitting" or "sitting & kicking". The concept behind this approach is to run as slow as possible early in the race, trying to conserve enough energy to sprint at the very end. This method of racing can be quite risky. Many times, the slow starting pace puts the runner too far back to make up the ground in the final dash. When I ran in high school and college, we called this method "sandbagging". We used this term because by racing this way you never ran up to your full potential. It was as though you were deliberately underperforming either out of laziness, fear, or simply to beat runners in a way that seemed unfair.

A spiritual corollary to this type of racing is described in the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13). The five foolish virgins are asleep and when the bridegroom's return is imminent, they try to cover for their lack of preparation by making a last-ditch effort to get ready for the wedding. This plan of attack is ineffective, and they are refused access. For whatever reason, this group felt they could put off their spiritual preparation for the Kingdom. This mentality can easily befall us and is caused by a variety of motivations. Whether it is an active desire to engage in the things of this world (1 John 2:15-17), laziness (Provers 14:23, Romans 12:10-13, Hebrews 6:11-12), or the lack of belief in the imminent return of Christ (2 Peter 3:1-7); we can't allow ourselves to be deceived into thinking we can delay putting in the effort required to go onto perfection. God's people are people of action who strive to "redeem the time" (Ecclesiastes 11:1-6, Ephesians 5:15-16). Sandbagging in this life is not how we are to be running to obtain the prize that God has in store for us.

In future weeks we can review the other two race strategies, but until then we can ask ourselves if there are areas in our lives that we are spiritually dragging our feet.

Happy Sabbath,

Devin Schulz