It’s not about finishing, it’s about communing with the father.
In Romania, so about a month and a half ago, I told my friend that I wanted to go home. I’m sure majority of you know, but my health has played a big factor in some of the hardships I have faced this year. Romania was a hard month for me regarding health. My natural tendency is to keep these things to myself, not let anyone in, and then when it hits a point, feel helpless (something I need to work on). In the moment of feeling helpless, I told my good friend Cait that I wanted to go home. Her response to me was “What would it look like if you did go home?” I immediately got defensive and said “I don’t actually want to, I CAN finish!” Cait looked at me and said “Kennedy, it’s not about finishing.” Dang. This was so incredibly convicting for me to hear.
As I sat with this conversation and prayed about what the Lord was trying to show me, I left Romania with one of my favorite reminders as of now, “It’s not about finishing, it’s about communing with the Father”.
1 Corinthians 1:9 “God is faithful, who has called you into fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
As it pertains to the race, I recognize ways pride can easily creep up on you. The thrill of saying you lived with 38 people in one house, lived in a tent, did life with the same 5 people 24/7 for 4 months straight, met people all over the world, lived out of a backpack, etc. for 11 WHOLE months and you didn’t quit can easily, if you are not careful, steal your attention and motivation from the true JOY of this year, communing with our Father.
Although, this truth does not just pertain to the race, in fact the race is such a SMALL portion of the life I have and will live. The reminder of “It’s not about finishing, it’s about partnering with the Lord, communing with our Father” is something I hope and pray that the Lord continues to remind me of as my life continues.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is Gods will for you in Christ Jesus”
It can be so easy to get caught up in the next thing. So easy to push yourself to do the hard thing and accomplish the next goal, but in the process, we can loose sight of where God is in all of it. We live in a fast pace world, a world that tells us we need more. More people, more money, more accomplishments, more to fill our schedules, etc. I don’t think that “more” is necessarily a bad thing, in fact I think it can be a blessing. Although, I do think that when we focus on the more and focus on what we are capable of apart from Christ, we loose sight of all that is important or eternal.
I write this blog for two reasons. One, I want to be extremely vulnerable in ways that I can easily become a victim to pride. How the Lord has so graciously revealed these different areas of pride and has reminded me what the purpose is of each journey he has taken me on, falling in love with Him. And two, I want to encourage both you, and myself with this simple, yet convicting truth: “It’s not about finishing, it’s about communing with the Father”.
Colossians 3:15 “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.”
I encourage you to take some time to pray about what you are “trying to finish”, what may be consuming your mind in which you have not taken every opportunity to spend time & partner with Him? Comment below ways you would appreciate prayer in, what has been distracting you from partnering with Him fully, or some encouraging and practical ways you have found to come back to the feet of Jesus! I would LOVE to hear 🙂
