Passing The Baton: Moving With Certainty Towards Moving Targets

For the past few days I’ve had “Out of Hiding” by Steffany Gretzinger on constant replay. At one point in the song she belts out, “You’re almost home now. Please don’t quit now.” 

That line became a resounding chorus to me. It was as if God was telling me that you're so close to what you’ve been praying & being patient for…and to keep pushing because it’s just around the corner. 

…and any other time that bit of encouragement would’ve be an immediate oasis, but truth be told, I’ve BEEN feeling close for a LOOOOOONG time. Sometimes hearing that over and over is just as tedious as the continuous wait…and the wait would be fine if I had a timeline. 😅 It just seems like the target keeps moving.

I asked God to help me understand that…and He did. 

Recently I woke up to the image of a relay race where one runner was passing the baton to the next runner. If you’ve ever seen these types of races then you know passing the baton correctly and efficiently is a major key to winning the race. The baton must be passed within an “exchange” or “passing” zone and rarely ever does the passing runner and the receiving runner stop at the same time to make the pass. Somebody’s always running. 

To that end, the passing runner is seemingly running towards a moving target. Of course, though…the passing runner doesn’t stop until after the receiving runner gets the baton. 

That image put a lot in perspective for me. Sometimes it literally feels like I’m putting so much energy into attaining or reaching something that’s running away from me…and a lot of times I get stuck in my head about it like, “okay, maybe this isn’t for me” or  “maybe God doesn’t want me to go to the next thing yet…” but that’s not necessarily true. 

Sometimes moving targets are proof that you’re in an exchange zone, proof that it’s time for the next.

When the next leg of your life’s race starts moving, that’s not a sign to stop where you are. That’s not necessarily a sign to reevaluate the race, either. Those moving targets are proof that you’re close! They’re actually invitations to push a little harder. 

What’s so interesting about an “exchange zone” or a “passing zone” is that soooo much is going on in that space & time. You have one runner picking up speed and another runner slowing down. There’s a baton that can’t be dropped. Let’s not forget it’s a race. So, there’s a coach pushing you. There’re folks in the stands cheering you on…other folks actively cheering against you. There’re even other folks around you in their own zones. It’s a lot…

Have you experienced that in life? It can be a bit chaotic, but part of managing that zone is focusing on the priority. In a relay race you’re always gonna have the crowd, the coach, and other runners present, but in that passing zone, you gotta forget everything else and get that baton passed in that specific space & during that specific time.

…and that’s another encouraging thing about looking at life’s transitional periods as “passing zones.” Passing zones are previously marked areas with already established parameters. In comparison to the whole race, they don’t last that long. They’re only for set periods & set spaces.

As believers, our lives are a lot like that. Our lives have already been marked. Jeremiah 29:11 lets us know that God has plans to bring us to an expected end. Ecclesiastes 3:1 lets us know that everything has a season. An end is just a set space and a season is just a set period.

Sooooo…it may seem chaotic and unyielding to have to run towards something that’s running away from you, but even when we’re dealing with what seems to be moving targets we still have the stability of God’s promises. Maybe we don’t have a specific timeline, but we have God’s word that after we’ve suffered a while He’ll establish us and make us perfect, wanting nothing. (That’s 1 Peter 5:10!)

…and that’s just ONE of His promises. We’ve got a book full!

We can still run with certainty knowing that seasons change and life’s transitions are just passing zones to our next. Even more than that…we have to remember to forget the stuff around us and “press on to reach the end of the race, and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” (That’s Philippians‬ ‭3‬:‭14‬!)

I know I’ve been saying this for a minute now and I’m sure you’ve been hearing it, too but….you’re almost there! Pease don’t quit now!