Run To Win Series

Day 1 when you say your first word

• Day 1 take your first step

• Day 1 of starting school

• Day one of the first Date

• Day one of Marriage

• Day 1 of a new job

• Day 1 of making Jesus Lord

• Day 1 of this year

Lets make today Day one:

Day 1: Run to Win

Lets make today Day one in 5 days work with me

Day 1 we are going to Run to Win

Biblical concept that the Apostle Paul lays out in 1 Cor. 9 and Phil 3

24 Don’t you realize that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize? So run to win! 25 All athletes are disciplined in their training. They do it to win a prize that will fade away, but we do it for an eternal prize. 26 So I run with purpose in every step. I am not just shadowboxing. 27 I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified. 1 Cor. 9:24-27 NLT

For 2025 we must first decide that we are going to run to win

Today has to become Day 1.

If you are going to Run to Win it will take a decision

Decide to Run to Win

"Every moment of every day, we make decisions. The outcome of your day, your year, and your entire life are mostly defined by the sum of the decisions that you make and the actions that you take along the way." Jack Canfield

Paul decided when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus that He was going to Run to Win.

“Decisions Determine Your Destiny”

Just like we sang today. I have decided to follow Jesus…No turning back

Illustration: Burn the ships

On February 19, 1519, the Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés set sail for Mexico with an entourage of 11 ships, 13 horses, 110 sailors, and 553 soldiers. The indigenous population upon his arrival was approximately 5 million. From a purely mathematical standpoint, the odds were stacked against him by a ratio of 7,541 to 1. Two previous expeditions had failed to even establish a settlement in the New World, yet Cortés conquered much of the South American continent.

What Cortés is reported to have done after landing is an epic tale of mythic proportions. He issued an order that turned his mission into an all-or-nothing proposition: Burn the ships!

As his crew watched their fleet of ships burn and sink, they came to terms with the fact that retreat was not an option.

To retreat was not a decision that could be made. Decision was they were all in

This is what Paul said

…but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Phil 3:13b-14 NLT

We must decide to forget the past (failures, mistakes, regrets,)

Press on to the finish line.

Press - Continue moving forward in a forceful or steady way

Once you decide you are going to Run to Win Then we must

Define The Win

• What does the finish line look like

“Define the win is where you begin.” Craig Groeschel

We need direction or we get off course

We can not Run Coddiwomple

Coddiwomple is a verb that means – To travel in a purposeful manner towards a vague destination

Corinthians was the home of the Isthmian Games

• So they would have understood the analogy

• Run To Win

• Paul new what the win was. preach the good news to all

• Set the destination so that you know where you are going.

Illustration: In 1994 Mauro Prosperi

Ultra-marathon in Morocco a week long race of 155 miles.

Mauro Prosperi disappeared on the fourth day of the race he ran into a sandstorm and it caused him to go 181 miles off course he had no idea where he was going.

He was completely lost but he continued to run for 9 days.

Everyone is running but some are running aimlessly

Many people will run the race of life in 2025 but don't know where they are going.

Running Coddiwomple

Run to win but if you don't know what the finish line is you can't get there.

Without a defined finish line you will live like everyone else

Set where you want to go in the important areas of your life

What is your win?...relationship with God

• In your marriage

• In your carrier

• In your parenting

• Relationships with other people

• In your finances

• In your physical life

Define the win