This time of the year in America, there is a phenomenon called “March Madness.” This is the term associated with the NCAA college basketball championship tournament that decides the champion of college basketball each year. It is called “March Madness” because there are always some shocking results in who wins some of the games. The eventual champion is usually a highly regarded team, but there are always some significant surprises along the way. The tournament format is such that if you lose a game, your season is over. There is a compelling nature to every game, and the teams often play with a desperation not always seen in the regular season. Players will give everything they have to win because every game is an “all or nothing” proposition. This intense desperation is one of the reasons the games are so terrific to watch and why every year there are some big underdogs that win.
Our Prize
Paul uses athletic competition to speak of how we should live our lives as believers. In 1 Corinthians 9:24, he writes, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.” Paul says we should run our race to win. Just as an athlete trains, prepares, and gives their all to win their competition, so too should we in our Christian lives. Paul continues to expand on this idea as he says that, like a championship-caliber athlete, we should be disciplined, self-controlled, and purposeful in how we live our Christian lives. He says that athletes are all these things in their athletic endeavors, and all they can ever get from it is “a perishable wreath.” In other words, they will win some type of trophy that ultimately will have no real value. Our prize, however, is an eternal, imperishable prize.
Overlooking what’s most important
Amazingly, we can devote so much time, effort, discipline, and intensity to becoming excellent in playing with a ball but find it so difficult to consistently have a devotional time each day. We tend to be purposeful in many aspects of our lives but are very haphazard in our spiritual lives. We have workout programs, personal trainers, skill development coaches, and we put in the time necessary to excel in sports. We read, study, work late and go the extra mile to excel in business. In our spiritual lives, we have no plan, are inconsistent in our disciplines, and put forth little effort to excel.
Give it Your All
Paul’s point is not that it is wrong or foolish for athletes to train for reaching their full potential. His point is that if they will do what they do to win something that will not last, how much more should we be even more disciplined and purposeful in how we live as Christians. Our prize is eternal. It is imperishable. Moth and dust can’t corrupt it, and thieves can’t steal it. It is worth our everything. Play with desperation. Play to win. Give your all for the Master.
As Lent commences on Ash Wednesday, we are entering a time of introspection and prayer leading to Easter. Let us reflect on the significance of death preceding resurrection, urging readers to embrace a daily practice of surrendering self in preparation for our spiritual transformation.