Make Every Second Count

“‘LORD, make me to know my end, And what is the measure of my days, That I may know how frail I am.” Psalm 39:4 NKJV

In a story titled “Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha breaks the men's half-marathon world record by one second” published yesterday, it was reported that Ethiopian runner Yomif Kejelcha made every second count as he broke the men's half-marathon record by just one second Sunday. Kejelcha finished strongly in the Spanish city of Valencia to set a time of 57 minutes, 30 seconds, knocking a single second off the record set in 2021 by Ugandan runner Jacob Kiplimo in Lisbon, Portugal. Wow right? Yomif was so fast that I had to manually calculate his pace (4.375) since no pace chart lists a half marathon that fast! And to put into perspective how amazing his feat was, and why he had to make every single second count, consider that the amount of time he broke the record in was about the amount of time it takes to sneeze. 

And, you know, when it comes to having the wisdom to make every second count, you and I would do well to follow the example of David who prayed, “LORD, make me to know my end, And what is the measure of my days, that I may know how frail I am.” David wanted to understand just how short and unpredictable life was so he would not only grasp how weak, fragile, prone to wander, and easily broken he was without God but would recognize that he only had a certain amount of time to serve God and to bring Him glory, which were David’s absolute priorities. 

So in the spirit of a runner seeking to break a world record, make every second count my friend. Run your race the best that you absolutely can, by living each and every moment to know God and to serve Him—so that no matter how long or short your life is, you’ll have done your part in bringing God glory, helping others, and leading the lost to Jesus. Apart from that, life is lived in vain. 

Heavenly Father, thank You for reminding us that every second we are given is a gift to be used for the Kingdom. Lord, please help us to understand just how fleeting and delicate life is that we would not waste the time You have given us. Help us to live in such a way that our lives, no matter how many days we have had, will have mattered. It’s in your precious name we pray Jesus. Amen. 

Happy Running!