April 30

Finishing Well

J. Robert Clinton has studied the lives of 1300 historical and contemporary Christians. He estimates that the percentage of those who finish strong is about one in three!!! This is a startling fact that should cause every one of us to seriously examine our lives. What derails so many Christian? There are many causes such as power, possessions, pleasure but the largest single factor is that Christians simply plateau. As goes your heart so goes your life. That is why Solomon said, “Guard your heart for it is the well-spring of your life.”
In our reading today we have the most powerful antidote to fight this plateau. What is this super powerful antidote that can guard our hearts? It is praise and worship. Look at these references in today’s readings:

Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness.
Sing joyfully to the Lord.
It is fitting for the upright to praise Him.
Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
Sing to him a new song, play skillfully, and SHOUT for joy. It does say shout!!!!
Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds!”
But may the righteous be glad and rejoice before God; may they be happy and joyful.

This Sunday when you sit in church look at the person on your left and right and realize that two of the three of you will not strongly finish the race. Once you have gotten over the shock of that fact, and then make a commitment to take the antidote of deliberate daily worship. Your commitment to read God’s word every day this year is a discipline that will pay huge dividends. But reading is not enough; we must move the truth of God from our heads to our hearts. Bringing worship and praise into our daily quiet time is something we must intentionally do. Break out that old guitar, old trumpet or just sit down with some praise music and sing at the top of your lungs. If you have family in the house it might be better to do this when they are awake. If you are extremely voice challenged you might want to limit this to the car. You will get strange looks as people pass you and hear you singing your heart out to the Lord, but the greater benefit will be your heart will be changed and renewed. And a strong heart is what really counts in life.

As a Christ follower for many years I have seen far too many people walk away from the Lord or disqualify themselves by dropping out of the race. Don’t think for one second that this fate could not occur in your life. If ever there was a time when we need the Christ followers to finish strong it is right now. We are living at one of the most strategic points of history and we need everyone to stay strong in this race.

So the moment you finish your Bible reading and this blog, fill your lungs with air and from the very center of your heart praise and worship our great and awesome God.