Last Updated on October 10, 2022 by Sarah McCubbin
You are never alone even when you feel alone. At a recent cross-country race, I had so many thoughts going through my mind and I wanted to share….
On a chilly October morning, the runners gathered in the middle of a field. The spectators lined the startline wrapped in blankets, hats and mittens, while the runners lined up for the race in shorts and t-shirts jumping up and down to generate a little heat.
This was the high school girls’ race, just one of many races happening that day, with over a hundred girls racing not just to win the race but to beat themselves…to do a bit better than last time. They had traveled to the edge of the state to the local fairgrounds from all over northeast Ohio. Coaches, students, parents, grandparents, and siblings had traveled in from over an hour away to support these runners.
Coming into the race, parking was a challenge. The traffic backed up onto the road with attendants moving as fast as possible to collect parking fees and get people parked in the overflowing lots. The runners were a tiny percentage of the people at this race…most of the people there were spectators there to cheer the runners on.
The Race Begins
With the crack of the gun, the runners took off across the field racing toward the path that would wind itself around the grounds. With no instructions, the crowd of spectators also begins its own race. Moms and dads jogged across the open spaces to find another place along the path to cheer on their daughters. Grandmas and grandpas also moved a little more slowly but no less determined to find the spot where they will see their granddaughter run. And the coaches, moved with caged energy…as they waited to see their runners round the corner.
And when the first girl comes, the shouting begins to rise. Cowbells start ringing along the race path as people cheer her on. And then comes the next one and the next and the cheering gets louder. No one stops cheering after the first girl goes past. She is destined to win but the crowd doesn’t care. They will cheer on every girl in that race.
As the runners sprint by, you hear, “GO! You can do it! You’ve got this! YOU WERE MADE FOR THIS! I’m so proud of you honey!”
It’s so loud! And so overwhelming.
As I stood there, I could hear the loud echo of heaven shouting the same thing down on each one of us. It was the roar behind the roar. The Father looked down and his angels stood by his side and they were cheering.
“GO! You can do it! You’ve got this! YOU WERE MADE FOR THIS! I’m so proud of you honey!”
As I stood shouting for my daughter and my niece and their friends as they ran by, I could hear heaven cheering for me…and for each one of us. And I won’t lie, tears started running down my face, because many days, it feels like I’m running a race and I’m at the back. I see other people ahead of me…they are faster, better, and more prepared.
But what if it doesn’t matter? What if the God who made us…shows up for us…and wants us to know He is on our side. He’s ringing a bell…He is sending people to try and tell us…and sometimes we can hear it…and a lot of times we can’t.
It can feel like we are running alone…but the roar of heaven is this, YOU ARE NEVER ALONE.
You have a Father who is FOR YOU. You were Created with a PURPOSE and for such a time as this.
I think many of us wonder if God is pleased with us…especially if we aren’t sure we believe He’s there, or if we stopped believing. Maybe we are too tired to think or we’ve been burned in the past. Maybe we don’t know if we will ever move past this place because it just feels like too much right now.
Many of us think that faith looks like religion…but what if it doesn’t? What if it looks like earnest questions…like a determined miner looking for treasurer. What if faith doesn’t have all the answers, but it pursues the one who does?
Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith, it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
I love that God is excited about those who seek Him. Seeking is a journey…seeking is looking…seeking is full of lots of time without answers. I know it has been for me. Seeking and faith are always doing this dance…of knowing and not knowing…of trusting and believing and searching out more.
The race we run is not one of perfection…but a perfect race is not the goal. Run well. Ask good questions. Seek truth. He is for you!
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The End of the Race
A year ago today on October 10, 2021, my grandma, Mary Hull Naumoff stepped into heaven. She was known as mom…grandma…friend…cheerleader…baby holder…friend…champion…warrior to those who knew her. She was a woman of faith…imperfect…but perfectly loved. She lived a full life…so full… jam-packed. But when her days here were over and her race complete…she stepped into heaven.
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I think of her often. I think of where she is now. When I heard the roar from heaven on race day, I knew she was there along with so many others who have gone ahead. While she was here, she roared with her prayers…and now that she is there, I can almost see her shouting alongside the Father…the angels, and those whose faith is now complete…who know what we cannot yet see.
“GO! You can do it! You’ve got this! YOU WERE MADE FOR THIS! I’m so proud of you honey!”
You have a Father who is FOR YOU. You were Created with a PURPOSE and for such a time as this.
(I love you Grandma! Thank you for your legacy of family and faith.)
*This piece is not a theological treatise…it is not meant to be! I do believe God wants a relationship with every one of us…and that He is for us and not against us and that He has much grace for each of us on our faith journey.