What Does It Mean to WIN?

In 1 Corinthians 9:24, the Apostle Paul wrote:  Don't you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize?  So run to win! (1 Cor. 9:24 NLT)  So what does it mean to "win"?  That question occurred to me yesterday afternoon as I was running and praying.  I was having a challenging run.  The five miles seemed more like fifteen for some reason, and I felt like stopping to rest.  1 Corinthians 9:24 came to my mind.  I started turning it over and over in my mind.  I remembered that when I was 14 years old, and ran in my first varsity track meet, I competed in the mile run.  I ended up running a 5:09 and came in second place by just a few yards.  I didn't win, but it was the best I could do.  Today, there's no way I could run a 5:09 mile. Does that mean I'm a loser?  Paul's illustration makes it clear that WINNING is the goal of a race, and his point is that we ought to "run" the "race" of life to WIN.  I started thinking about various scenarios in life:  what about me as a 50 year old runner?  Can I really expect to WIN a race in which there are 20 year olds competing?  Of course not.  So what would a WIN be in that situation?  What about the person who is "tone deaf," and wants to WIN on American Idol.  If he or she doesn't come in first place, is that a loss?  What would a WIN be in that situation?  What about the child who is born with an IQ of 70.  Is he a loser, because he can't score well on the SAT's?  What would a WIN be for him?

The answer in each of these cases is:  a WIN would be offering the best I have to offer, and trusting the Lord to be the judge of the victory.  It means letting the Holy Spirit make up what we lack, and when we "cross the finish line" in whatever "race" we are running knowing that we trained well, we prepared as effectively as possible, and that we relied fully on God to empower us to be and do the best we can be.  When we do that, we WIN!  The world may not see it that way, but Jesus does, and at the end of the day we are "running" for an audience of ONE.  That's good news, isn't it?  It's great to win the race, but as Paul points out in his illustration, the prize is one that fades over time.  The REAL race, the race of life holds out a prize offered by God for those who run the race to WIN.  May each of us run in such a way that we WIN that prize!