By Jaidan K.
II Timothy 4: 7-8
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
I chose this Bible verse because, in my mind, life is a race. We long to win it in the end. It’s our goal. But, what is our real end goal? JESUS! And, because he died for our sins I know that I can run my race with His encouragement and support.
Because he died for me I know that I am saved and I can reach that end goal. He created each of us so that we can work hard and run with perseverance — no matter how hard life may or may not be so that one day we can be with him.
It doesn’t matter if I finish first or if I’m the best, because as long as I can complete the race I know that I can reach Him.
This verse tells me that I am able to run the race, and that I am able to live my life with Jesus, then I will be able to reach that finish line of Jesus Himself.
One of the reasons I chose this verse was because last summer my sister and I went to a Baptist Bible camp in Brooklyn, MI. It was a great experience to be with her, and we bonded a lot over sharing that camp experience. The camp was focused around this verse the whole week. The verse is very important to me because it brought my sister and me closer together and to Jesus.
It also reflects a lot on me and everyone living in this world. I know no one ever has a perfect life. They all have hurdles that they need to jump over in their life to reach that end goal of Jesus. Some may not make it, because of little belief in Jesus. But others are able to run their race with full confidence that the life after the race will be obstacle-free with Jesus.
I know that I, too, have and will experience many hurdles, some bigger than others. But I have faith that I can get over them with the help of my God, Jesus Christ.
I can trust that He can help me get through whatever life throws my way, by providing so many helpful people in my life. Like my great-grandpa, Chet Riley, who had the idea to pick me and my sisters up every single Sunday to go to Sunday School and learn about Jesus. And my great-grandma, Anna Babbitt, who has taught me how to worship and has provided so much for me, not only in my faith walk but in my life as a whole, too. They both go to Catechism classes with me, and even go when I’m not there so they can express what was taught so I don’t miss anything. Also Kathleen Dickerson, my mentor in my faith walk, goes to Catechism with me every Sunday and provides a great deal of help for me while I learn about Jesus. He has placed all these wonderful people in my life to help me and encourage me that everything will be alright if I just keep believing. He has helped me to run my race towards the finish line so I can finally be with Him in heaven!
I picked this image because it signifies running a race and overcoming a hurdle or obstacle that has been put up in her life. She looks confident that she will be able to overcome this hurdle/obstacle. I’m running a race too- a life-race and know there have been and will be hurdles or obstacles for me in my race. I know that I can do it because I believe in Jesus, and he will run this race with me all the way.
