"I love the sense of satisfaction that I get when I’ve done a swimming workout or race, and know that I gave my whole being and heart to God in every moment of the swim. It’s the best worship I can offer him."
Suffering
Join with me in suffering!Now there is an offer no one could refuse - Join with me in suffering (2 Timothy 2:3). Certainly, no one could accuse Paul of cheapening the gospel to make it more attractive to people! He uses three metaphors to help Timothy endure to the end. Timothy is to be like a soldier, an athlete and a farmer. (We will consider the athlete later in more detail.)
Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs - he wants to please his commanding officer. (2 Timothy 2:3,4) The soldier’s main aim in life is to please his commanding officer. Similarly we are to live our lives with an “Audience of One” in mind – whether we are competing, with our family, in church etc. Our aim is always to please God.
The soldier is to avoid getting involved in civilian activities when he is on duty. Now there is absolutely nothing wrong with attending to civilian affairs – buying a house, decorating it, doing the garden – except when you are engaged in a battle. There is nothing wrong with going out with friends for a nice meal on a Friday night – yet how many times have you had to say No to such an invitation to make sure that you are on the top of your game on Saturday? It just comes with the territory.
What Paul is saying is – if a soldier makes the sacrifice to win the battle, if a sportsperson does it to win the game, are you making the same sacrifice for the sake of the gospel?
Gospel work, like farming is brutal hard work that comes with no applause or accolades. That is the secret to right gospel work – simple hard graft. Timothy was perhaps surrounded by church leaders who sought the recognition and attributes of leadership, but those are not the leaders Timothy is to identify and train. Find those who work hardest when the recognition is least, who take slightly more of the blame and slightly less of the praise than is their due and Timothy will have found potential gospel leaders for tomorrow.
As you represent Christ in sport – and if you are a leader trying to pass on what you have learned to the next generation, then be ready to make sacrifices. Be ready for hard graft where no one sees you. And look for others with the same attitude.