Run your race

My kids find some of the funniest videos on the internet. I must admit that I have spent some time watching people do amazing physical acts or narrowly avoid certain injury or death. The most recent ones I have seen involved people celebrating a little too soon, while the rest of the competitors did not give up. Be it a cyclist or a runner; they felt they had certain victory, and they started to showboat or take their victory lap too soon. They lost the race as someone else, who remained fixed on their goal, passed by them at the last second.

One of the best examples of staying fixed on the goal when all hope appeared lost was Dave Wottle and his 800m final in the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich Germany. He was having some knee issues before the Olympics and had not trained as much as he wanted, yet he still made the finals. However, when the gun went off, he quickly found himself in last place, not close to anyone. Even toward the end of the first lap of the two-lap race, he had moved near the end. However, the last lap was something to behold as he ran and weaved his way to victory, shocking the rest of the field and himself with a win by 0.03 seconds. It is still considered one of the greatest Olympic wins, even after all these years.

Wottle has given many interviews about that race and his strategy. He repeated on more than one occasion that he needed to “run his race.” He just stayed on his path, running his race, the best way he could while remembering what his coaches had taught him. He said it was hard to remain focused because he was so far behind, but he just tried to clear his mind and run his race.

How are we doing with our race? If we view our life as a race, it may be an uncertain one. We may not know the route or even be sure of the finish line. But if Christ is our coach, we can forge ahead with greater certainty and peace. KJV John 14:6 reads, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the father, but by me.” I love how this scripture points out the path that we need to follow; but nowhere does it say that everyone has to stay with the group or be at the same spot as everyone else.

At times we may become discouraged and slow or stop running our race as we compare our gains and losses to others. It is dangerous to gauge our spiritual progress by comparing ourselves to those around us. We sometimes feel discouraged at having so much farther to go instead of remembering how far we have come, and that we ARE on the right path. We have times and seasons in our lives when we are busy with work, education, and family. The challenge is to clear our minds and focus on spiritual growth.

I believe that true progress requires small, daily efforts and not huge, monster steps. Do we try to do right by others and honest in our dealings? Do we fill our mind with negative garbage, things which we can’t control? Or do we try to read a few scriptures or listen to uplifting music? By just doing a couple of small things every day, we can spiritually move forward, even a little bit. These efforts can grease our wheels.

Prayer is essential to stay on course. Even a simple prayer in our heart is a great start. I pray each morning in my truck before I back out of the garage. It is my quiet time to ponder and reflect. An uplifting message, scripture, or quote can help keep your day on the right track. It’s also helpful to keep your mind filled with positive things rather than allow your brain to idle. For me, this is listening to Christian Rock music during my drive or my downtime. I find that the words from these songs fill my mind when it otherwise would be idle during the day. These are just a few things that help keep me in a better frame of mind throughout the day and keep me “running my race.”

Dr. Boston is a local physician, member of the Mat-Su Regional Hospital Board of Trustees, Colonel in the Alaska Air National Guard, father, husband, grandfather, and member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.