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BY SHERYL MORSELL

When I was a young girl growing up in the early 70s with my parents and two brothers, I was a very competitive tomboy. I rarely played with dolls but I loved playing with trucks and Hot Wheel cars, footballs and army men. Particularily, I enjoyed playing football and baseball with the neighborhood boys. Whatever they did, I did better. I was especially good with running. I could outrun any boy in my neighborhood and would challenge them that if they raced me they would not win. The prize for me was winning the race.

I later joined a duckpin bowling league and won a trophy for bowling the highest score. The trophy eventually became tarnished and was thrown away. The prize did not last.

As I became older, I still maintained my athletic skills by joining a softball league on my job. After more than 10 years of running the bases on the softball field, I met Jesus. I could not believe that I was giving up my favorite sport, softball (I lived and breathed it), to attend Bible study. God orders your steps. At times, we must give up something good in order to do what God wants.

The apostle Paul said, “Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.” And everyone who competes for the prize is temperate in all things.

This Christian life is like a race, too. It involves both discipline and purpose. God had a plan and a purpose for me. Before I met Jesus, my life was running aimlessly. The race I ran was for all the wrong reasons. As Christians, we are running toward our heavenly reward and it takes hard work, self- denial and grueling preparation. Ultimately, our goal is to glorify God and bring people to Christ to receive the eternal reward. The Apostle Paul said, “So I run with purpose in every step and I discipline my body like an athlete.” This heavenly race requires sacrifice, study, prayer and worship to give me the stamina to win.

This Christian walk is a race of faith in Jesus Christ. It is a race whose goal is eternal life with Christ, made perfect in him. We have to run with our eyes on Jesus because it is the most important race of our lives. This Christian race is not a race of speed, but of endurance because stored up for us is a prize – a crown of righteousness.

As a spiritual leader in my church, I constantly seek the Lord for his will and guidance and presence in all things. The ultimate goal of all that we do in the church is to make, nurture and empower disciples for Jesus Christ for the transformation of our communities and the world through passionate worship, radical hospitality, intentional faith development, risk-taking mission and service and extravagant faith sharing.

As a Certified Lay Minister, by God’s grace, I will continue to run and press on with Jesus to see what the end will be. The Lord has called and equipped me to do great things. Yes, I have fallen so many times but I get back up, dust myself off and start running again.

I have been running all my life, but now I am running the good race and I am winning.

Sheryl Morsell is a Certified Lay Minister who serves as chairperson of the church council at John Wesley UMC in Baltimore.