Light and Strength

Our experience of self within this life is hilly: many ups and downs meet us on this road. Many runners just encountered Houston Marathon a week ago. It is considered a flat course in the world of marathon runners—there are hills in other great marathon cities. Boston, New York, San Francisco, Chicago, and others, have grand ups and downs.

I don’t have this broad experience: my three marathons were all here. I must say, however, for a light, hobbyist like myself, even the gentle rises and falls of local runs are difficult. Heading out, about mile twelve, on Westpark Drive, there is an overpass that feels bigger than it is. When tired, the slightest slope feels tough. Then in the finishing miles, the dips going under the overpasses into downtown feel oppressive. I remember thinking, “No, not another dip! How will I climb out of it?

We must sometime dig from deep within for light in our spirits and strength for our physical bodies. This is what I think of when I read the opening of Psalm 27:

The Lord is my light and my salvation;
   whom then shall I fear? *
the Lord is the strength of my life;
   of whom then shall I be afraid?

The psalmist looks to God for light, salvation, and strength. God is the source for the person of faith. We know that we are too weak, and frail to make it through the great hills or even the small hills of life on our own. It is only hubris that leads us to say, “I did it, all on my own.” Who gave us our minds; who gave us our bodies and spirits? Surprisingly there is more joy and satisfaction from thanking God for every victory than from vainly claiming it for us alone. It only hurts us to sink into disguised insecurity and say, we get all the credit. It doesn’t hurt God’s feelings. God knows what makes us tick. But it does hurt us when we fail to realize that God is our help and our shield—that God is the light, the salvation, and the strength within our lives.