Sunday 22nd February 2015 - Run Your Race To Win - Brian Nish

RUN YOUR RACE TO WIN INTRODUCTION 1 Cor 9v24-27 – Don’t you realise that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize. So run to win! All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadow boxing. I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should do. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. We’re all in the ‘race of life’ – so you need to ‘run for your life!’ We need to run as if our very lives depend upon it – because they do! We are running not just for a prize in this life, but also in the one to come. The good news is we can all win a gold medal – because in the kingdom of God we can ALL be winners! PUT THE PAST BEHIND YOU Phil 3v13-14 - …one thing I do, forgetting these things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus Sometimes, because of bad experiences or failures, we take ourselves out of the race of life Don’t let your history rob you of your destiny! • Allow God to use your past experiences to shape your character in a positive way Get healed and restored where necessary Develop an attitude of mind which says “If I can come through that I can come through anything” • Allow God to use your past failures as stepping stones to success today Read from list GET BACK IN THE RACE Phil 3v13-14 – one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press towards the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus • Remind yourself of Father God’s grace and love, and that He always wants what is best for you – every day of the week Remind yourself that His grace is sufficient for you to do whatever He has called you to do (2 Cor 12v9) Remind yourself that you are unique, and no one can do what you do, in the particular way that you do it • Then – and not before then – start training again – (athletes: sacrifice, discipline, commitment - 1 Cor 15v10 – I work harder than them all…by the grace of God…) - and get back into the race • Begin to rule and reign again, over your body, and over your circumstance – through receiving an abundance of grace (Rom 5v17) • Begin to run again – by the grace of God (2 Cor 12v9) - reaching forward to those things which are ahead RUN YOUR RACE TO WIN 1 Cor 9v24 - …so run to win! • Remind yourself that because of what Jesus has done - you already have the victory and are running in it – you are not running towards it • Victory for the Christian isn’t something to be achieved at some point in our lives – but is something we already have, and should be living in, and enforcing, on a daily basis! • We run our race to win – by grace – which means we are able - to live godly lives - to love and serve God and people faithfully - and advance the kingdom of God – because of what Jesus has done • Sometimes, as we press on towards the upwards call of God in Christ Jesus, we have to change lanes. We’re still in the race but in a different lane – because we’re in a different season in God (eg Brian/Allison) • If we don’t recognise the change of season we could end up staying in the wrong lane – and struggling – because there’s no grace and anointing for us to run in that lane any longer • Grace and anointing for ministry only fully flows when we’re running in the right lane – for the particular season of God that we’re in at that time CONCLUSION Let me encourage you, wherever you are today, to begin to ‘run for your life’ and begin to ‘run your race to win’ – through receiving an abundance of grace (Rom 5v17) We don’t get the opportunity to come back and run our race again – this is it – so don’t waste your life (‘The Final Quest’ by Rick Joyner) What we do with our 70/80 years on earth today will affect us for eternity God’s grace is sufficient for all of us to run our race to win and gain an eternal prize!!!