Life is like a... triathlon?

I was almost there.  I knew once I turned that corner I would see the finish line, hear the cheers of my fellow racers and the oh-so coveted 'binging' sound of my timing chip announcing that I was finished as I crossed the final timing mat and the rush of emotions of having completed the challenge would overtake me.

Triathlon number one of the season would be complete.

Back up a second... Triathlon?  Yup, I had to do a double take too.  Don't be mistaken, I am no athlete. Never have been.  But for the last few years I have been pushing myself into new territory. And this is definitely new territory.

Every time I compete, that would be three so far, I can't help but connect this life's journey to that of the adventure of completing a triathlon. For those of you who are not familiar with what a triathlon is, it is a sporting event where you swim laps, ride a bike and then run all in continuity.

So HOW does a triathlon equate to life?  I see it like this.


Life brings us to different stages and each stage has it's own challenges and it's own joys. Each athlete in a triathlon event has their strong suit and their weakness - ask anyone who has done a triathlon and they will tell you which is which for them.  For me, swimming is my strength, which is a whole other posting, and running is my supreme weakness.  But as I am swimming I am not thinking about my run and how hard it is going to be - I would give up before I even got started!  I focus on the task at hand, stroke by stroke, pedal by pedal and step by step.





Life is the same isn't it?  Thinking too far ahead can cause us to feel overwhelmed by what is coming up.  Focus on the part your in.  That might be year by year for you. It might be month by month, week by week or day by day and still others are in a part of their journey that they can only focus hour by hour.





I don't know if right now you are in the strength of your event, or perhaps you are struggling through the weakness; but I encourage you to keep going because soon you are going to hear the sound of the crowd cheering you on as you cross that finish line.  You see, God has a marvellous finishing for us. He is busy building a place for us to live with Him eternally.  And each leg of this life race is bringing you closer, preparing you to cross that finish and you may not hear the binging of a timing chip, but you will hear a voice, God's voice, as he says to you, "Well done."


                           "Let us run with endurance the race that God has set before us."