Above Reproach: Serve With Purpose

1You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. 3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. 5Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. – 2 Timothy 2:1-5

In college, I ran Cross-Country and Track. I was a middle distance runner so I would run the 400 and 800 meter runs, as well as the 4x400 and 4x800 relays. Every week I would compete in the individual events and lose. I would run as fast as I could, but I knew even before the race started that I stood no chance at winning the race. The purpose of any race is to win, so racing individually in college was very difficult for me. The relays on the other hand, were a completely different story. I knew every week that our relay teams had a legitimate shot at winning. Our purpose every week was to win and break records. With that purpose in mind, I always ran faster times in relays then I did in the individual races, because I was running with a purpose. Doing something with a purpose helps you go longer, faster, stronger, while being more driven, diligent, and faithful.