Keep Up the Good Fight Part II.

2 Timothy 4:8
8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

I mentioned yesterday how if you fight the good fight then you will will finish the race, a clear representation of maintaining your faith the entire time. Now I want to tell you the end result of holding that strong faith.

There is bound to be the greatest eternal reward that you can imagine just by sticking to your faith. Often times throughout any given day we can openly deny Christ like Peter did; we have that many decisions. If you realize that everything happens for a reason and you stay strong, then you will be granted the "crown of righteousness" that is given to you as you prepare to enter the gates of heaven. Notice how it's not just an ordinary t-shirt or a trophy. Still, God never falls short of his guarantee, or better yet, his promise to reward those who long for every part of him.

Without a doubt, it takes intense training and conditioning to fight the race. I saw a "superhuman" story on television recently and in order for this man to run hundreds of thousands of miles in his lifetime, he didn't just wake up one day and decide he was going to run without practicing. He knew that's what he wanted to do and he trained and trained so much so that running made him feel alive. He couldn't have run 50 marathons in all 50 states in 50 days without perseverance, encouragement, and training.

As a Christian, you need a healthy relationship with Christ. That takes training to become a new normalcy. You have to read Scripture everyday and find some means of delving into the Word everyday. Try starting each day off with a prayer. Ask the Lord to help guide you with your decisions and to stir you away from your sins. It's this kind of training to fight and live a life filled with faith that will earn you the biggest gold star in heaven!