Be prepared to give a defense

"But in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give a defense to everyone who asks you the reason for the hope that is in you. But respond with gentleness and respect," 1 Peter 3:15 BSB

As reported by Runner's World yesterday, Eliud Kipchoge won the NN Mission Marathon in Enschede, the Netherlands Sunday in a time of 2:04:30. The world record-holder competed in the elite-only race with 70 runners aiming to secure an Olympic qualifying time after the majority of races were canceled or postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. The 2016 Olympic Marathon champion ran with fellow Kenyan Jonathan Korir and a pacemaker until about 30K before he made a move that put him clear of the rest of the field. He finished more than two minutes ahead of Korir (2:06:40) and third-place finisher Goitom Kifle (2:08:07) of Eritrea. With just three months months to go until the Tokyo Olympic Games, "the world record-holder" they said "proved he’s ready to defend his Olympic gold medal in Japan."

And you know, when it comes to being ready to defend something, the Bible says that you and I should "always be prepared to give a defense" to everyone who asks us the reason for the hope we have inside. And we do this by first sanctifying Christ as our Lord; which means revering, honoring, respecting and following Jesus above everything else in our lives. It's this close relationship that will then lead us to seek more of Him through the pages of the Bible which will in turn prepare us to justify the strong and confident expectation we have in Jesus Christ, that what He promised He will do, with all "gentleness and respect.”

So seek Jesus above all else my friend. Be prepared to tell others about what He has done in your life to substantiate the hope you have placed in Him so that they might come to seek Him and place their hope and trust in Him too. 

Heavenly Father, thank You for being the God we can place our total hope and trust in. Your promises have always proved to be true and You have never once left us on our own. Give us the words to give a defense of the many reasons we have to follow You so that others might seek to place their hope in You and follow You as well. It's in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen. 

Happy Running!!!

Never Once - Matt Redman