“But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Philippians 1:12–14)
What follows was written by my dear friend and sister in Christ, Pamela, after having to bow out of a 100-mile race midway through the weekend:
“Yesterday’s race was the most technical race I have done so far. Lots of climbing, almost 6,000 feet, tons of roots and rocks. I had one good fall, but nothing major. But I’m now the proud owner of my 5th DNF at 50 miles and a beautiful medal. I’m not upset at all. The last time I was on a trail like this was a few years ago when I was injured at Possums Revenge. I do know I could have gone the full distance, it was just a timing issue and that definitely makes me happy that my training was better than I thought. I think I’m still a bit scared of serious falls and it’s something I’m working on…”
Now, while many people might have gotten upset about this turn of events, Pamela chose to embrace the disruption in her plans. In fact, her reaction was so contrary to the way the majority of the world would react that I commented, “I love your attitude about the DNF. I’ve had my fair share of them, and I know that they always teach me something. Congrats on a good run!”
Pamela’s response? “It was something else for sure. I feel like I have grown so much since I started running ultras 9 years ago. I think you work harder when you are fighting a DNF than when you actually finish a race.”
To which I replied, “I could not agree with you more. There are so many emotions that go along with it. But I know one thing is certain—people are more prone to follow us when they see the way we handle our DNF than they ever do by the way we handle our victories.”
Pamela agreed and shared that she had been praying the whole time.
Later, when I reached out to learn more about her experience, she said,
“As of late my new prayer every day has been, ‘Lord, open my spiritual eyes, my ears, and Lord, Your will be done and not mine.’ I say this every day before I start my prayers for other people… On my way up to the race we were talking and He knew I wanted to spend more time with Him while I was racing. Our Lord is so amazing!! He brings tears to my eyes. And that’s what makes this DNF special. He has shown me so much and I just can’t be unhappy about it. I love Him so much.”
Do you just love that or what? Pamela’s experience illustrates why every believer should be praying the same thing:
“Lord, open my spiritual eyes and my spiritual ears, and Lord, Your will be done, not mine.”
This was something Paul actually prayed would happen to the members of the church at Ephesus:
“that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints.” (Ephesians 1:17–18)
Paul understood that many of the workings and redirections of God cannot be seen with physical eyes, only spiritual ones. This is the very reason Paul himself was not upset about the change of circumstances that had led to his arrest in Rome. Not only did that redirection give him time to write Philippians, Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon, but Paul wanted it made known that:
“the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Philippians 1:12–14)
Paul was not only not unhappy about awaiting trial for two years; Paul owned his chains. Why? Because through spiritual eyes, he could see that God’s hand was all over it and that his chains were actually serving to further the Gospel. This imprisonment allowed him to preach to people—his very captors—who would never have heard the Good News otherwise. And this “setback” gave him the opportunity to write the prison epistles that literally changed the world. The overwhelming joy and unwavering faith Paul demonstrated, despite what the world would call failure, helped other believers grow bold enough to speak about Christ and spread the Gospel despite their own hardships.
Pretty awesome, right?
This is the very reason every believer must pray, “Lord, enlighten the eyes of my heart…” each and every day. But let us not stop there. Let us then pray for the boldness to step out and do whatever it is God is calling us to do—no matter how hard or how unconventional it might sound—knowing that our success is not measured by achieving our will, but by doing His.
So don’t get upset or frazzled when things don’t go your way, my friend. Look up instead and say, “Lord, open the eyes of my heart and help me to be a willing vessel, used in whatever way You see fit to further the gospel.”
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank You for using ordinary people to further the Gospel. Cause me to pray every day to see things through a spiritual lens, that I might not get frustrated by the detours and disappointments of life but trust that they are a part of Your plan to advance the Gospel. Help me to remain joyful in all situations—whether I cross the finish line or I don’t—so that others might see that my joy is not found in worldly accomplishments but in fulfilling Your will. In Your precious name I pray, Jesus. Amen.
Happy Running!
Melissa Sharp is an ultra runner and running coach who has completed more than 100 marathons and ultra marathons. Melissa has learned how to keep running the race of life for the glory of Christ even though she endured decades of domestic abuse. Melissa is a survivor. Through her daily blog thejoyfilledrunner she inspires others to live in the strength of Christ.
