Leadership Thought: It Is Not How You Start but How You Finish That Counts,  or a Book That I Think Everyone Should Read.

Dear Family,

We have all probably heard an adaptation of the phrase “Life is not sprint but a marathon.  On our refrigerator I have another phrase which expresses essentially the same thought – “slow and steady wins the race.”   It’s a reminder sent to me by a family member that the race is not always won by the swiftest.  These statements have significance whether athletically, vocationally, or spiritually.   I am sure that you can name several friends and associates who started strong.  They sprinted out of the blocks, and it seemed that they were around the first turn before you even pushed off.  But those quick starters never paced themselves, and somewhere during the race they wiped out.  They started fast, but they didn’t finish strong, or even worse they didn’t finish at all.

One of the most influential books I have ever read was  Finishing Strong by Steve Farrar.  I can’t  recommend this book strongly enough.   I would encourage you to pick up a copy.  I think it will be of value to those of you who wish to finish strong.

Let me quote a passage from the book that really shocked me, and which got me to thinking about the way I want to finish my life.

“In the Christian life, it is not how you start that matters.  It’s how you finish.  John Bisagno had been pastoring First Baptist Church of Houston for several years.  When John was just about to finish college, he was having dinner at his fiancée’s house one night. After supper, he was talking with his future father-in-law, Dr. Paul Beck, out on the porch.  Dr Beck had been in ministry for many years, and that was inevitably the subject toward  which the conversation turned.”

“John, as you get ready to enter the ministry, I want to give you some advice,’ Dr Beck told the  younger man- Stay true to Jesus:  Make sure that you keep your heart close to Jesus every day.  It’s a long way from here to where you’re going to go, and Satan’s in no hurry to get you.”

“The older man continued, “It has been my observation that just one out of ten who start out in full-time service for the Lord at twenty-one are still on track at the age of 65.  They’re shot down morally, they’re shot down with discouragement, they’re shot down with liberal theology, they get obsessed with making money…but for a one reason or another nine out of ten fall out.”

The twenty-year-old Bisagno was shocked.  “I just can’t believe that.’ He said.  “That’s impossible? That just can’t be true.”

“Bisagno told how he went home, took some of those blank pages in the back of his Schofield Reference Bible and wrote down the names of twenty-four young men who were his peers and contemporaries.  These were young men in their twenties who were sold out for Jesus Christ.  They were trained for ministry and burning in their desire to be used by the Lord.  These were the committed young preachers who would make an impact for the Lord in their generation.”

“Bisagno relates the following with a sign: ‘I am now fifty-three years old.  From time to time as the ears have gone by, I’ve had to turn back to that page in my Bible and cross out a name.  I wrote down those twenty-four names when I was twenty years of age.   Thirty-three years later, there are only three names remaining of the original twenty-four. (p. 16-17 Finishing Strong by Steve Farrar.

That story saddened me because I know it’s true.  Some of the best athletes, some of the best potential teachers, some of the best prospects for ministry  - they all started strong but dropped out somewhere between the start and the finish line.

Success is never attained overnight.  It takes time.  Victory is won as you make your turn around that last curve and head for the finish line, not by sprinting those first hundred yards and trying to leave everyone behind at the start of the race.

The growth and development of our spiritual life largely depends on consistency.  For example, length is not always strength when it comes to our prayer life.  More important is consistency.  Length will increase as we spend time with God.  It is only natural that as you grow in your love for someone, you will want to spend more  time with that person.  The same is true in our spiritual life.  Don’t be made to feel guilty when you read of those great saints of yesteryear who spent hours in prayer.  It took each of them time to develop their spiritual discipline, and I bet that every one of them started slow—maybe a few minutes at first—but day after day they consistently spent more time with their Lord, and day by day they found they longed to spend more time,

Yes, if you want to finish strong spiritually, you must remember that “slow and steady wins the race:”  Cultivate consistency.  Pace yourself spiritually.

Moses, I am sure, knew something about consistency.  In Hebrews 11:27 we read two words¨ “He endured.” Moses had staying power.  He was durable.   He was in it for the long haul, and when at eighty when others had dropped out along the way, Moses was still going strong and still being steady, and still blessing the lives of others.  That’s what I want for my life, and that’s what I hope you want for yours as well.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom