by Lindsay Mast
Synopsis: As social creatures, we may enjoy solitude, but frequently excel through interaction and encouragement from others. Let us, therefore, provoke one another (i.e., stimulate, stir up, or spur) one another to love and good works (Heb. 10:23-25).
“What??!!” my friend Katie said, aghast. “You’ve never had anyone cheering for you at the end of a race?”
“No?” I said, not realizing how much I’d shocked her. “I haven’t wanted to bother my husband with bringing the kids out. Besides, with little kids, running is also the only time I get to be alone right now.”
This was years ago, on our way to our first race together. It was near her house, so I’d parked and was riding with her and her husband. I would come to realize I really had blown her mind! Her favorite thing about races is running toward her family at the finish line.
She must have felt sorry for me because at the end of the race, there she was. As I came around the corner toward the finish line, there was Katie, screaming my name for everyone—everyone—to hear.
You know what? I loved it. A huge grin spread across my face. I kicked it and finished the race, feeling strong and happy.
Spectators, I learned that day, help! Knowing someone is pulling for you can make the difference between a sad, slow finish and a strong one. Even a stranger’s encouragement can give you a push to step it up at the end.
Many of us learned this last year—spectators matter. As post-pandemic road races slowly come back, the one thing still missing is the large crowds gathering to support friends, family, and strangers along the way. If you’ve run a race during this time, you know: a race with no spectators feels empty.
It may have taken losing crowds to COVID to teach us how much we needed them, but God already knew it. The writer of Hebrews knew it, too. In Hebrews 11 and 12, he speaks of the witnesses to our spiritual race who are cheering us on. These are the souls who, noted for their amazing acts of faith, now wait for us to join them in eternity. They are our motivation to drop the things that would weigh us down, to untangle ourselves from sinful situations that are keeping us from finishing this race we have started.
While we can’t see them, they are as real as the paper or digital device on which you are reading these words. Think about that. They exist. They are real. They are rooting for us—for me and for you!
These people truly trusted and obeyed—in the face of war, fear, unknown futures. They were outsiders (such as Moses), underdogs (such as Israel vs. Jericho), sinners (such as Rahab). They were people of faith who held tenaciously to God through torture and punishment and painful deaths. If we faced similar circumstances, I fear that our sensitive modern selves would buckle under the pressure in no time flat.
Take a little time to read Hebrews 11-12:2 and consider what those people of faith endured. Think about what you would go through for the Lord. Now consider that there is a huge number of people who have gone through incredible hardships in their race, yet finished.
Not only did they finish, but they are now gathered around the finish line, waiting for you and me! Cheering for us. Rooting for us. They want heaven for us, because they know it’s worth it. Whatever baggage you’re schlepping along the course, they’d tell you to put it down. Whatever entity is tempting you to walk away, they’d tell you it’s rubbish. Perpetually tripped up by old habits and temptations? “Break free,” they’d say. “Whatever you’re seeking, you’ll only find it in God.”
So if you sometimes feel like there’s no one to cheer you on, know this: you have a bigger crowd cheering for you than at the largest road races. They’re waiting for you, and right there in the center is the one you can set your sights on—Jesus. Let’s place our trust in Him the whole way. He knows your struggles and loves you more than anyone else can. The joy that lay before Him? That’s us, friend. We just need to believe it—to trust and obey and make it across that line.
