THE RACE IS NOT FOR THE SWIFT

I returned and saw under the sun that —

The race is not to the swift,

Nor the battle to the strong,

Nor bread to the wise,

Nor riches to men of understanding,

Nor favor to men of skill;

But time and chance happen to them all.

(Ecclesiastes 9:11)

IT WOULD BE AN INTERESTING EXERCISE

TO TRY TO PREDICT WHO WILL AND

WHO WILL NOT MAKE IT TO HEAVEN. Of

the people you know, for example, who

are the ones who will see God’s face in

His eternal kingdom? Whatever criteria

you used to make such a forecast, there’s a good chance that many of your

predictions wouldn’t come true. It’s an

obvious fact in this world: we are often

surprised at how people’s spiritual lives

turn out. Some whom we think are bound

to remain faithful to the Lord turn out to

be little more than disappointments,

while others we had little hope for end up

being the most faithful. The race is not to

the swift!

The reason predictions of any kind are

hard is that life is full of unexpected turns

of events. As far as people’s spiritual lives

are concerned, God is able to bring into

play factors that we could never have

foreseen but which totally change the

outcome. He never overrides anyone’s

freedom of will, but He certainly does

intervene providentially in ways that

produce surprising results.

But if the race is not to the swift nor the

battle to the strong, what does that

mean? What should be our attitude about

that fact?

First, we need to put away our “crystal

balls.” Especially when we’re trying to

influence someone who seems to be a

“hopeless case,” we need to allow that

things may turn out better than we think

they will. We should just go ahead and do

whatever is right today, and let the future

turn out to be whatever it will.

But second, we need to quit thinking that

everything depends on us. We need to

leave more room in our calculations for

God to do what He can do. Any time God

is involved, “it ain’t over till it’s over,”

and many more good things may turn up

than we, or anyone else, could have

produced or predicted. The race may look

like it’s lost, but still be won — despite

our lack of swiftness.

“The disillusionment with our own

abilities is, perhaps, one of the most

important things that can ever happen to

us” (Tim Hansel).

                                                                                     Represented By Deacon Olaleye S. E.