The two Marathons

"We have plenty of time," Monica said as we set out on our journey. She was a born optimist by heart. And the linchpin of our motley crew. She had a strong faith in God, and she had no compunctions in sharing her faith when situations arose. She was a software engineer glued most of the time to some screen or other. If not for her work, social media cornered most of her waking day. A redhead, she was impetuous.

                                   Tanya, the other girl in our group, was calm. She was perhaps the youngest. Also, a techie, she hardly was fit for the marathon we launched ourselves on.

                           Most of us, like them, were desk workers. Our sedentary life did not make us fit for what we ambitiously went for.

                                   Another primary driver of our team was Trevor. He had some experience in walking and was the go-to man for all of us. He advised us about our equipment.

                                   Mary, the pragmatist was another of us. Working in a bank, tied to a desk most of the day, she was trying to make up for her lack of exercise. I was the last member of the team. My work in a newspaper was mainly editing news stories and working with strict deadlines.

                                   "Trevor," I asked, " do you think we can complete this half-marathon in time?"

                                   "Noah, don't worry. We will make it. We all have the motivation and the spirit to pull it through!"

                                   As soon as the gun went off, we started. Walking. Walking and talking. The common thread connecting Trevor, Tanya, Monica, Mary and me, was our love of books. We all were members of a book club. We regularly chose a book or two and read parts and discussed them online.

                                   "Why don't we have the discussion on the book this week as we trudge our way through? It will help us forget our pain as we walk?" suggested Monica.

                                   The rest of us agreed and we started our discussion. Unlike the other days when we discussed some fiction by a great author, Ecclesiastes from the Bible, which was our book choice this past week, to read and discuss.

                                   Surprisingly, Tanya started, "The author seems to a man who has seen most of life in his time. Experimented with pleasure endlessly. I wonder whether he would have smoked pot too if it was available then."

                                   "I agree with you Tanya," I said. The suggestion to go for this book from the Bible was mine. "The author is supposed to be King Solomon, the son of David who was the next king of Israel perhaps sometime around 1000 BC."

                                   "Is he the same as the Preacher? Why doesn't he call himself the King then?"

                                   "Perhaps he wants us to know that this is the entire philosophy he gleaned from all his experiments."

                                   Trevor was tracking our progress. He interrupted the discussion. "I think we must pace ourselves a little faster, friends, if we have to make it to the tape in a decent time frame."

                                   All of us started walking a little faster. Concentrating on our walk, the discussion petered out.

                                   Sweating and panting, cramps beginning to appear, we all reached the halfway point. Trevor made us all take some energy drinks and a small break.

                                   "I wonder whether Solomon ever walked a race?" quipped Mary in her quiet manner.

                                   Smiles broke out on our tired faces.

                                   "What do you think of his philosophy in general?" I asked the group. Each one had something to say.

                                   "It is totally hedonistic and down to earth. I like it. It is true today for us too." said Mary.

                                   "Why does he say that we must fear God and keep his commandments. That seems to be his conclusion. But how he arrived at that is not clear to me. Can someone comment?" That was Trevor.

                                   The only sound for a while was that of our feet as we dragged them on the hard road.

                                   "We must remember the life of this man." I began, "he was born to David and was said to be loved by God even at his birth. There was some competition to ascend to the throne after the time of David, but somehow Solomon managed to get the royal approval to succeed to his father's throne. The first prayer he made after that, is revealing. He asks God for wisdom and knowledge to lead the people of Israel. That is what God gave him, along with plenty of wealth and long life."

                                   "That was why he constructed so many buildings, including a temple for the Lord God, I think," added Tanya.                                               

                           We were steadily walking along the track, and Trevor was keeping time.

                                   "Steady guys! Let's continue to pace up a little. Remember, we want to complete the half marathon, in good time."

                                   We continued our walk, hastening up a bit. Signs of fatigue were slowly but surely coming up in most of us, desk jockeys. But we persisted.

                                   "What do you think of the conclusion by the Preacher?" I asked.

                                   Tanya began, "I think it is a logical and good one, Noah. What else is there in this life, as he mentions, under the sun?"

                                   "There is something we have to remember folks, as we look at the book and the author's conclusion," said Monica.

                                   "What do you mean, Monica?" asked Tanya.

                                   "Solomon keeps mentioning "life under the sun". What he means is that in this natural life, when no supernatural involvement is there, his conclusions add up. In one way he is precluding the existence of the supernatural and His involvement in the world. There is some other truth which is above the sun, in other words!"

                                   Flabbergasted, I asked her, "can you please tell me in plain English, what you mean Monica?"

                                   "Well, Noah, it is like this. As you all know, Ecclesiastes is one book amongst 66 in the library we call the Bible. In this book, Ecclesiastes, the author is giving his own viewpoint, which he stresses is one from under the sun. But if you look at the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelation, you find some other thread going through all the 66 books."

                                   My interest was ignited, and I asked, "And what pray, is that thread?"

                                   "All through the books, we find the thread of Salvation and the Kingdom of God. God promises that a seed of the woman Eve will bruise the head of the serpent. That is a promise of the coming Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ whom we see in the gospels."

                                   "Did he, this Jesus Christ bruise the head of the serpent? I don't remember reading in any gospel that he did so?" I asked.

                                   Monica continued to limp partially, as most of us were, by then. We were in the last leg of our half Marathon! But she had the patience to reply to me. She said, "The serpent in Genesis refers to Satan. And the Lord Jesus Christ defeated death and Satan by dying on the cross and being resurrected on the third day."

                                   Mary spoke up quietly. She seemed to have less of difficulty in walking. "But what difference does that make to you and me, Monica?"

                                   Clearing her throat as she limped along, Monica said, "Well all of us are sinners in this world. The life, ministry, sufferings and death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, has brought salvation to all of us across time and space."

                                   There were some protests. "But how can the death of a man way back 2000 years ago in Jerusalem, have anything to do with our sins in the here and now?"

                                   "You all know that Jesus was unique. Unique in that he was born of the Holy Spirit. Unique in that He was sinless. In fact, He was the only sinless man that ever lived on earth. That is why His death and resurrection works for all of us. Through His sinless blood, we all are forgiven. From being simple sinners, we become forgiven sinners. That makes us His children."

                                   "You make it sound so simple Monica!"

                                   "Because it is so simple, many have overlooked it and are still struggling with their sons. But if you realize that you are a sinner, repent from them and turn to Jesus, He will save you from your sins and forgive you. Then you will become, like me and many others, a saved sinner."

                                   "Looks like you want us all to do this Monica?"

                                   "Yes. With all my heart I desire that all of you also will become saved sinners. In fact, for many days before this walk, I have been praying for each one of you. And I think God heard my prayer."

                                   “Trevor!”, I said, “Am I right to think that we aren’t going to make it!”

                                   Trevor smiled. "Folks, our tape is in sight. We will make it in say, ten minutes if we keep up this pace."

                                   "Please consider what I said, dear friends, " pleaded Monica, "God is inviting you to Himself. Please do not reject Him. This is my earnest plea. Even as we finish this marathon, remember that our life is another marathon. If you want to complete it successfully and reach heaven to be with God, the only way is through the Lord Jesus Christ."

                                   We all heaved a sigh of relief as we passed the tape and collapsed. As we went to recuperate at the local cafe, we continued to discuss our other, spiritual, Marathon. I felt the beginning of a stirring of the Holy Spirit within my soul. But that will be another story.