Second Wind

A long-distance runner knows the oddly satisfying rush of a second wind. When it appears the athlete’s body can’t continue another step, suddenly and surprisingly, an upsurge of strength courses into the body and rejuvenates the runner. God seems to have built this "second wind” phenomenon into the human body to help explain a spiritual phenomenon that a believer experiences while running the spiritual race. It’s a rejuvenating grace that floods the spiritual man when he needs it most (i.e. while in the prison cell, while being led out to die, when falsely accused, or when under the duress of a crushing responsibility). When the Christian attempts to supply a Biblical name to this “second wind” phenomenon, it’s hard, because it seems to be a mixture of a handful of key ingredients—faith, hope, joy, and patience. And when these four ingredients blend together, it lifts the believing soul up out of the mire and back into a full sprint. The Church of Jesus Christ could really use a fresh impaction of this four-fold phenomenon.