accomplishment.

Through the cracks between the shoulders of the crowd in front of me, I could see them running, raising their arms in victory.  Red faces and throbbing legs accompanied the wide grins on their faces after running a god-awful number of miles.  They slow down, put medals around their sweaty necks, and they breathe.

Runners.

There was something beautiful about it.  A sense of accomplishment radiated from their faces.  Whether or not each one reached their time goal didn't matter because they finished.  They finished.  A feat for which one trains a long time.  During training, it seems like all you do is work and run and sleep and work and run, repeat.  But as their bodies cross that line, it is all worth it.

I have a brother named Daniel who is now 20 years old.  Always an active guy, he played soccer, baseball, and golf.  He ran a couple of 5k's in elementary school.  He danced in show choir and even rode the unicycle.  It was at 16 years old, as he earned his black belt in tae kwon do, that he learned he had rheumatoid arthritis.  He was constantly in pain and it hurt to even walk.

And now, four years later, he ran a marathon.  By the grace of God, his medication is just right to keep him pain-free.  He accomplished what seemed to be the impossible.

There's something beautiful about that, isn't there?  When something seems unreachable, but you desire it so deeply.  Determination, focus, and most importantly faith get you there.  God brings us there.  And in that accomplishment, we become more and more the people who God created us to be, and do more and more for His glory.

 Think about your own accomplishments and praise God for them.  Think about your own goals, and pray that God will get you there.

So we strive.  We press on toward the goal.  We remain in Him.  We accomplish that which He set for us to do.