lent devotion - soon our race will be run

Soon Our Race Will Be Run
By Kathy Day

I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith. Now there is a crown waiting for me. It is given to those who are right with God. The Lord, who judges fairly, will give it to me on the day he returns. He will not give it
only to me. He will also give it to all those who are longing for him to return. 2 Timothy 4:7-8

My grandfather, Jesse James May, was born on August 21, 1888, in Durant, Oklahoma. He married Viola Awilda Peacock in 1911 in Carrizozo, New Mexico. Eventually they moved to Fruitland, Idaho, where he lived until his death in 1978.

Grandpa was a man of faith, and to me he was the best grandpa ever. I especially loved his stories. This poem is an example of the wise words he shared with me and all of his family.

Soon our Race will be run
Just a few more days for toiling;
Just a few more nights dark and cold,
Then our tents will be folded forever.
We shall trade them for mansions of gold.
Just a few more thorns with the roses;
Just a few more heartaches and tears,
Then we shall behold him in splendor
When the King in his glory appears.
Just a few more days in this prison
To serve as a sentence for sin,
And the angels will welcome us in.
Just a few more trials and testings;
Just a few more errands to run,
Then we’ll hear the King say, “Come up!
Thy toiling forever is done.”
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​Thank you, Lord, for the people who have shown us how to walk by faith, especially people such as your servant Jesse James May. Help me to "run my race" in ways that honor you and bless your people. Amen.