Finish It

Finishing is better than starting. . . (Ecclesiastes 7:8 New Living Translation)
As we approach the beginning of a new year, allow me to stress the importance of finishing what you start and completing whatever you begin. Just think of how much better society would be as a whole if people would simply finish what they started.
Just imagine how many additional books would be written, or businesses established, jobs created, degrees bestowed or inventions made if more people simply finished.

Consider how much more stable our communities, families, marriages, and children would be if as a whole we finished what we started. What if more dads would finish being fathers beyond inception. What if more married couples would finish their vows and stayed together “as long as they both shall live.”

Even in Sports, the teams that are successful perform their best at the end of the game. The victorious team is usually the team with a strong finish. And I am reminded of my high school days playing basketball. Often in practice while running fast break drills, players would sometimes attempt to be too cute with their passes and turn the ball over, or too fancy with their shots and miss the basket. And coach would yell- Finish it.

Consider the case of Derek Redmond the Olympic Sprinter from Britain who participated in the 1992 Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain. Half way through his qualifying match after leading most of the race of the 400 meter run, he hears a pop in his right hamstring, pulls up lame and then falls to the ground in agony. Then, in a moment that will live forever in the minds of millions, as the medical crew arrives with a stretcher, Redmond lifts himself to his feet, waves off the medical crew and begins hobbling down the track for the last 120 meters of the race.

One hurtful step at a time, his face twisted with pain and tears, Redmond limps onward to finish the race, as the Olympic crowd watches. Suddenly, out of stands a man (later identified as Redman’s father) jumps over the railing, runs onto the track, fights through security and wraps his arm around Redman’s waist and tells him, “We’ll finish together.” Redman puts his arms around his father's shoulders and sobs. Together, arm in arm, father and son, with 65,000 people cheering, clapping and crying, walked toward the finish line. As they approached the finish line, and with the crowd in an absolute frenzy, Redman’s dad releases the grip he has on his son, so Redman could cross the finish line by himself. Redman did not win a medal at the Barcelona Olympics, but he finished.

While Redman’s story is inspiring, the greatest example of finishing something can be found in Jesus Christ. He is known as the author and finisher of our faith (Hebrews 12:2). In fact, he told the multitude “ until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.” (Matt 5:18 NIV)

Jesus had the greatest destiny and most significant purpose of anyone who ever walked the face of the earth. His goal was to seek and to save that which was lost and to bear the sins of the world. In fact, Christ’s will to finish was so strong that that in John 6:39 he says “this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day."

And as his ministry on earth came to a close, he was lied upon, denied and betrayed by his disciples. He suffered the mockery of trial and was beaten, spit upon, and rejected by men. He was made to carry a rugged cross, and was crucified between two thieves where they pierced him in his side, placed a crown of thorns on his head, and gambled for his robe. In three days he would rise again having conquered death, hell and the grave but before he could ascend to the Father he had to close out what he started. So with the weight of the whole world bearing down, he uttered these last words before he hung his head between the locks of his shoulders and died: "It is Finished." And because Christ finished, we have access to everlasting life, peace, joy and the power to finish not just in our spiritual walk but even in our everyday activities.

So as we approach a new year, my advice is the same to those who are multi-taskers as it is for procrastinators. For those who are contemplating starting business, obtaining a degree, writing a book, pursuing educational goals or starting a ministry, I offer this counsel that can be summed up in two words: Finish It.