"Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing."
Psalm 135 again
RenownYour name, LORD, endures for ever, your renown, LORD, through all generations. Psalm 135:13
Everything in sport is temporary. You are the champion but only for 1/2/4 years then you have to win it again or you cease to be champion. Similarly records often don’t last long either. Even the most illustrious career will only last 10, maybe 15, years. If you want to be an English Premier League football coach, the average time before the owners fire you is 15 months.
The first words of the Bible are “In the beginning God”. God has always existed and always will. As the Psalmist says God’s renown and reputation will endure for ever. In a world where at most we are likely to live 100 years, the idea of God’s eternal longevity is striking.
Of course our career matters, we are to give it everything. But at the same time we need to remember that compared to God we are but a drop of water in the ocean. So many people think they are so important, irreplaceable. Even the greatest of humans will be forgotten. We are called to do everything as unto the Lord. We are to give everything in training and in competition but at the same time we need to keep things in perspective and to remember how insignificant earthly things are compared to the renown of our eternal God.
Jim Eliot, a Christian martyr, said: "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose”.