A young woman stands at the head of a long runway, a wooden baton in her hand. At her side sits an eager German Shepherd, quivering. The woman swings the baton in front of the dog’s nose, then pitches it to the far end of the runway. The dog shoots down the runway, ignoring the bowls of food and snacks laid out along its sides, grabs the baton and races back to his mistress. He drops the baton at her feet and sits down. He looks very pleased with himself. Really. He does.

Another young woman takes her place at the head of the runway. The bowls of food and treats are still in place. A Golden Retriever sits at her side. He looks around and wags his tail. The baton is waved and tossed. The Retriever heads off, but spots a bowl of food and grabs a bite. He gets a bit further but that bowl of treats is just too tempting. A few more steps but oh, there’s another bowl of fragrant food just made for him. At the half way point the dog is so distracted he ends up turned around and heading the wrong way.

I laughed out loud the first time I saw this video. We own two golden retrievers and I know that’s exactly how they would perform if given the chance.

And it’s a lot like how I perform at times. Distractions abound and sometimes I just can’t resist. There’s that internet expert promising a six figure income if I just follow his plan. There’s that renovation show on T.V. that makes me drool – oh if only I could have a kitchen like that! There’s that car I keep seeing in my neighbourhood that makes me imagine driving through the countryside of southern France. And then there’s Facebook and all those games you can play on an ipad. And on and on and on.

The days can fly by with little if anything getting done for the Kingdom of God because I’m chasing after the bowls filled with dreams and promises. And sometimes, like that golden retriever, I end up going the wrong way altogether.

It’s then I have to stop and ask myself, okay, what is the right way? How can I get down that runway to the goal God has assigned me? It’s then I have to remember what my calling is all about – the calling to glorify Him in everything I do – and connect again with the One who designed it for me. I want to be like that German Shepherd, eager to please my Master and running with all I have, to do what He wants me to do. I want to focus on the true prize, not a reward, not a treat that will be devoured in seconds, but a life-giving relationship that is eternal.

So, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).

May we all “run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24).

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The row of tiny ducklings waddles across a busy street, guarded by the flashing lights of a police cruiser. A young boy hangs upside down, his ankles held by a friend as he scoops a kitten out of a dangerous spot. The rescuers hoot with glee as a stranded baby whale swims off to join its pod. We’ve all seen these kinds of videos of animal rescues, and we all cheer. We may even shed a tear or two.

Have you ever wondered why? Why are there scores of these animal rescue videos out there and why do they touch us so deeply? No doubt it’s because the animals are so helpless. We know that without human intervention they would surely die. But I wonder if there isn’t another, deeper reason. Could it be we are gripped by rescue of any kind because we know we are all in need of it? Could it be that at the core of our being we know we are as vulnerable and as helpless at that tiny kitten?

I believe so. I believe that all of us recognize our mortality. We don’t want it to happen. No one wants to die. We all would choose to live for just one more day. But we all know our time on this earth is limited. Perhaps we cheer at those rescue videos because they say, “Not today.”

Fear of death is a common malady. We all own it. No doubt it stems from the fact that death is the only true unknown. We can’t research it. Google “the afterlife” and all you get is speculation. We just don’t know for sure what lies beyond.

But there is good news. And there is a way for us to cheat death, not just for the moment, not just for one day, but for eternity. We can’t do it on our own. We are as helpless in this as that beached whale. But there is One who will rescue us, One who came to this earth for that very purpose. His name is Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us that it is possible to live forever in His presence.

The writer of 1 Corinthians said: “The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law.” (1Cor.15:56). There is no escaping it by our own devices. Sin is a reality, it is part of us, and it will, some day, result in our death. But that writer also said, “Where O death is your victory? Where O death is your sting? … thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1Cor.15:55,57).

Jesus gives us the victory because He removes the sin, “as far as the east is from the west” (Psalm 103:12). Jesus gives us His righteousness and takes on our sin and our punishment for it, in the moment we say yes to Him; in the moment we agree that sin is in us; in the moment we agree that we need rescue.

With His cloak of righteousness around us there is no need to fear death. We can know what lies beyond – an eternity lived in His presence.