From Finish Line to New Beginnings

But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.  2 Corinthians 4:7-12
 
The end of the ski racing season is at hand.  Although it might not appear to be, it is a grind.  Getting up to the mountains three times a week, whether it is sunny and warm or freezing and windy.  Yet, there is so much fun.  Developing relationships with the kids and their parents.  Watching them grow as ski racers and humans.  Celebrating their successes and being with them in their struggles.  Then it is all over.  The final race of the regular season was on Monday and the state championships are next week.  Then we will have an awards night and that is it.  All that time and effort shared, and we all move on to different things.  The underclassmen, we will hopefully see them next year, and new skiers will hopefully join the team.  But the seniors are on to other things in the world.  The end of the season is both hopeful and sad.  In that way, it is a microcosm of life.  We are all passing through, and so the story of our faith is one of death and resurrection.
           
In Paul’s Second letter to the Corinthians, he tells them about the constant struggle that he was under as he endeavored to be faithful to Christ.  Paul faced many persecutions and hardships from a world that did not understand his faith and sought to force him to turn away from it.  In addition, Paul suffered the normal struggles of human life: the death of people he loved, broken relationships, aching joints, cold weather, and sleepless nights.  Life was hard for him and his friends.  Yet, he could say, “We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body.”  Death, and the resurrected life of Jesus, were there on display in his life. 
           
Paul’s story is our story as well.  Perhaps not as spectacularly, but when we hold close to Jesus we are always in the process of death and resurrection.  This ski season is over, and that is a death, but we always have hope in the resurrection.  The same is true in the church, in our relationships with people we love, in our life of faith, death and resurrection is our story for the life of Jesus is on us and in us.

In Christ,
​Seth