“For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” — 2 Chronicles 16:9
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The verse above was one of my father-in-law’s favorites. One might say this was his life verse. He recently passed away at 94 years of age, leaving a legacy of a wonderful and powerful Christian life as a pastor who lived in the presence of God. Reflecting on his life and this verse, I’m reminded of another story that illustrated this truth of living in the presence of God.
There was a college soccer player from our high school whose playing time had diminished in recent games. In an effort to keep their conditioning up and to stay ready when called upon, this athlete would run the track in the football stadium in addition to the practices of their team. This extra conditioning usually occurred in the wee hours of the morning while it was still dark. The extra conditioning illustrated the life principle of staying ready so you don’t have to get ready when opportunity arises.
Not only did the opportunity present itself again for the player to get back on the field during the soccer season, unbeknownst to the soccer player, the school’s track coach had noticed how hard this unknown morning runner was pushing themselves in the dawn’s darkness. They sought to find out who this athlete was, only to discover it was a soccer player. Following the senior season of the soccer player, the track coach offered the player the opportunity to run track on a scholarship in the spring — even though this athlete had not run track at our high school or at the college ever before.
They were focused on running to keep in shape for soccer, not knowing someone was watching. The Lord would use this trial in their soccer career to bless them later on in life. The lesson is not necessarily that things will always turn out for our success, but that God will use our doing the next right thing in His presence for our best, conforming us more and more into the image of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
— Frick Frierson
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