Three-legged Race

Galatians 5:25 NIV Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

There are many things that have been lost in our modern culture. Screen time has replaced outdoor summer events like neighborhood BBQs, game nights, and all the associated activities like hide-and-seek, freeze tag, and of course—the three-legged race.

The secret to the three-legged race is that the two individuals, who are bound together, must move in sync with one another so every stride matches. When one person tries to move at a different pace or direction than the other, it does not go as planned. The only way to be coordinated in their movements is to have complete agreement on their direction and speed, with the most important agreement being who will lead and who will follow.

Like a three-legged race, Galatians 5:25 instructs us to keep in step with the Holy Spirit, walking in sync with the Lord and following Him. This only happens when we choose to let him lead. When we do, the walk is sweet and satisfying. He chooses just the right path, giving us purpose and fulfillment in the journey. However, just like in a three-legged race, we must lay down our own desire to lead. We must surrender every step to stay in synch and live the abundant life he has promised.

The most common word in scripture for ‘covenant’ refers to being bound, fettered, shackled, or tied together. A covenant relationship is a binding relationship—God’s unbreakable commitment to you. In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus spoke of this covenant relationship when he said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light.” What yoke is Jesus talking about?

A yoke was used to join two oxen together to pull as one. Jesus is calling us to be bound to him as one, to accomplish together what we could never accomplish on our own. In modern translations, Matthew 11:29 states, “Simply join your life with mine” and with it comes this covenant promise: my yoke is easy. That word ‘easy’ (Greek: chrēstos) is defined as good, kind, pleasant, full of grace, and being better.

In Psalms 51 David cries out, “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” What does it mean to have a steadfast spirit? It means to be firmly attached, to cleave to, fixed, and secure. The only way we can have a pure heart is to remain firmly attached and bound to the Lord, staying in step with Him each day. In some of his final words, Jesus reminded us, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” And when remain there is a blessing beyond compare! James 1:12 states, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast (yoked, fixed, firmly attached) under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”

We are called to “not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of our mind” Romans 12:2. To successfully run this three-legged race with Jesus, our mind must be renewed to come into agreement with him and surrender to his complete authority. If we allow God’s word to renew our minds, our heart will follow, we will stride in step with him, and run the race set before us (Hebrews 12:1).  The secret is surrender…….Lord, keep me bound to You!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To subscribe email: info@livingoaksministry.com                                  Copyright 2024 Living Oaks Ministry

Gary and Sandy Anthony      

Amos 3:3 NLT Can two people walk together without agreeing on the direction?

1 Corinthians 6:17 GNT But he who joins himself to the Lord becomes spiritually one with him.

Psalms 33:20-22 NLT We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone.

Deuteronomy 13:4 NLT Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.

Deuteronomy 11:22 NLT Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the Lord your God by walking in his ways and holding tightly to him.

John 17:21-23 NLT I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me. I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me.

Galatians 2:20 NIVI have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Romans 12:1-2 NIV Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

2 Corinthians 5:15 NLT He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

Romans 6:5-8 NLT Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him.

Ecclesiastes 4:9 NIV Two are better than one, for they can help each other succeed.

John 14:26 NIV But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.

John 16:13-15 TPT But when the Holy Spirit comes, he will unveil the reality of every truth within you. He won’t speak on his own, but only what he hears from the Father, and he will reveal prophetically to you what is to come. He will glorify me on the earth, for he will receive from me what is mine and reveal it to you. Everything that belongs to the Father belongs to me—that’s why I say that the Divine Encourager will receive what is mine and reveal it to you.

Romans 8:26-27 TPT And in a similar way, the Holy Spirit takes hold of us in our human frailty to empower us in our weakness. At times we don’t even know how to pray, or know the best things to ask for. But the Holy Spirit rises up within us to intercede on our behalf, pleading to God with emotional sighs too deep for words. God, the searcher of the heart, knows fully our longings, yet he also understands the desires of the Spirit, because the Holy Spirit passionately pleads before God for us, his holy ones, in perfect harmony with God’s plan and our destiny.