Staying focused on the Light

It was beyond dark this morning when I pulled my car into Gettysburg College's fitness center and headed out for my run through the battlefields. Adding to the darkness was the cold; a raw chill mist rose from the grounds as I made my way from the lighted parking lot out into the National Park. I love running the access roads which weave throughout the fields, but the downside at that hour during an overcast morning is that you can't see a thing. Well, you can't see most things.....there is an eternal light peace memorial which sits atop Oak Hill and it's visible from 20 miles away. So when I run that early, I keep my focus on that eternal light - I head towards it, and as I get closer it's amazing how much better I can see things around me. It's also no coincidence that my pace quickens -  I'm much more efficient and running just seems easier when I can see where I'm going. If I ever take my focus off the light, I soon find that I am off the road and in a field somewhere further away from my intended destination. Usually by the time I get to the light, the horizon is welcoming the first glimpse of the sun and the rest of my run is in the light. The difference, as they say, is night and day.

You would think that after 30+ years of running, I'd have learned that running safely through the darkness requires either bringing your own light or staying focused on one (like the peace memorial). You would also think that someone who writes a faith-based fitness blog would take his own good advice and always stay in the Light or follow the Light in his personal life. But just as I lose focus during my runs, taking my eyes off the light which safely guides my path through the battlefields, I lose focus in life and drift off the road and into life's battlefields - where land mines await, and hope is quickly extinguished in the darkness. The important point I'm making here is that I'm the one who has taken my eyes and my focus off His light. In John 8:12, Jesus tells us "I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have eternal life." He's always there, just like the eternal light peace memorial. It's a 24/7, 365 day thing. His light never goes out either. And while we WILL encounter darkness in our lives, there will always be His light to guide us back, to bring us home, and to show us the way through and out of the darkness, provided we stay focused on Him and never lose hope. BELIEVE.