There, on my bathroom vanity, was a perfect illustration of the irony of middle age: a tube of Clearasil lying next to a box of estrogen patches. I asked God, “Could this possibly be fair? Should a woman who is old enough for estrogen patches still have to contend with pimples?”
Ah, yes, middle age – that part of the race where I can’t quite see the starting line behind me or the finish line before me. The middle of many things is often uniquely challenging – the middle of the night, the middle of laboring to deliver a baby, middle school (does anybody really enjoy being 13 years old?).
Or how about the middle of an exercise routine? I like to work out three or four days a week at the gym. Okay, I lied. I don’t “like” to work out at all – I’d rather lie on my couch and eat Twizzlers. But I try to exercise for 45 minutes a few times a week on an elliptical machine (elliptical machines are what you get when treadmills and cross-country ski machines marry and have babies).
About 20 minutes into my workout, I’m always tempted to quit. I can think of a bazillion reasons why I need to cut my workout short. “I really need to pluck my eyebrows today,” or, “I’ve been meaning to alphabetize the spices in my pantry – if I stop now, I’ll have time for that.”
My powers to rationalize the irrational are truly amazing, but I try not to listen to that lazy voice in my head. And the only way I can do that is if I have determined before I even start that quitting is absolutely NOT an option. It may get uncomfortable and I may desperately want to bail out, but if I just press on, I’m always glad in the end. And yes, the end always comes.
And so it is with life. The Apostle Paul understood how hard it can get … and how important it is to keep pressing on. Near the end of his life, he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness ….” (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
Nobody knows how long they will live or how they will die, but when my time comes, I hope I’ll go out like Enoch, a man mysteriously described in the Bible like this: “Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” (Genesis 5:24)
I heard a speaker speculate that perhaps one day, Enoch and God were walking along together and God said to him, “Enoch, we’ve walked a long way together. We’re a lot closer to My house now than we are to yours, so how about if you just come on home with Me?”
Enoch and Paul walked with God; they kept the faith; they didn’t quit; they didn’t limp to the finish line, but hit the tape running. And when they stepped into eternity, I’m sure the pains of their earthly journeys melted away as they found themselves enfolded in perfect love, peace and joy.
Are you in the middle of something difficult right now? Are you entertaining thoughts of giving up or giving in? Don’t. Hang in there. Hit the tape running. Keep the faith. Do it God’s way. Press through the middle to the glorious end. You’ll be glad you did.