It's A WIN - a SUPER Win!

Well ... it's now official. The Pittsburgh Steelers are now, as the USA Today put it, "The Lords of the Rings" (as in Super Bowl rings). As a result of their victory in Sunday's Super Bowl against the Arizona Cardinals, the Steelers have won 6 Super Bowl rings - more than any other NFL team. As a Steeler fan, that brings a smile to my face! Because of this, there's been a lot of talk that the Steelers have become America's team (replacing the Dallas Cowboys in that role). Frankly, I do not care if the Steelers are America's team or not - they are, however, MY team! So my congratulations to the Steeler's organization and the Steeler nation.

As I think of all these pro athletes go through to get to this level of play - I am amazed! Would I love to catch a game winning TD catch in the Super Bowl before millions of people? You know it! But would I be willing to pay the price these guys pay to even be in the position to do so? Absolutely not! The pain, the sweat, the effort these guys put forth week after week is herculean! Yet they do it! Why? To win a ring! We who are followers of Christ are also engaged in a struggle that is very similar to an athletic competition. The Apostle Paul loved to use the metaphor of an athletic competition to describe the Christian life. Read what he writes to the church at Corinth:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. 27No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (1 Corinthians 9:225-27)

My question for all of us is this: What kind of effort are we putting forth as we strive to run the race God sets before us (see Hebrews 12:1-2)??? Pro athletes do it for a "crown" (or ring) that will not last. We, however, are running for a crown that will last FOREVER!!! Please take some time to stop long enough to evaluate how you are doing in running the race. If you want a tool to help you do this, check out the home page of Grace's web site (www.gracewv.org) and download "Evaluating Your Relationship with God: 50 Diagnostic Questions".

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj