Last night, Jamaican track star, Usain Bolt, won his third straight 200-meter Olympic gold medal and his 8th career gold medal. When watching Bolt race, he dominates the field of runners while making it seem so easy.
Canadian runner, Andre De Grasse, is a rising star who has developed a nice friendship and rivalry with Bolt. They had a great race in the semifinal of the 200-meter where De Grasse forced Bolt to step up his game and let him know he was right behind him.
After the race, De Grasse said, "I had to push him a little bit, you know, see what he has left in the tank...I want to push for gold, and even if I don't get it, I got to push to his potential, his limits and see what he has left."
As impressive as Usain Bolt has been during the last three Olympics, and even though it appears that he has no competition, there are still guys right behind him who are driving him to be his best and not allowing him to “let up.”
The interaction between De Grasse and Bolt is a great reminder of how we need to have people push us forward in the middle of our own everyday race. When we feel like we’re running alone or living life in isolation, let’s be challenged to find friends and mentors who are willing to help us reach our full potential.
All too often we can “let up” in our pursuit of Jesus, our work responsibilities, or our efforts with family. That's when having someone there to hold us accountable and keep us going is crucial. We need other followers of Jesus to make sure we’re aware of potential pitfalls or vulnerable areas that could cause us to slow down.
The Bible says in “The Message” translation of Hebrews 3:12-14, "So watch your step, friends. Make sure there’s no evil unbelief lying around that will trip you up and throw you off course, diverting you from the living God. For as long as it’s still God’s Today, keep each other on your toes so sin doesn’t slow down your reflexes. If we can only keep our grip on the sure thing we started out with, we’re in this with Christ for the long haul."
Today, let’s be open to let others hold us accountable and push us to keep following after Jesus with all we have...and make sure we cross the finish line. I’m Bryce Johnson and you can unpack that!
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, I pray that You would surround me with people that are going to push me toward You, and help me keep going when life gets tough. I pray I would be someone that holds others accountable while encouraging them to keep seeking and following Jesus. I pray this in His name, Amen.
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