Indianapolis will sit under partly cloudy skies today, with temperatures in the 70s. Crowds will gather. Engines will roar. The black and white checkered flag will signal the beginning of one of the most famous car races in America. For over a century, cars have lined up at the opening to determine excellence and the need for speed that many Americans have for it.

Every Memorial Day weekend, we are witnesses (either in person or on the big screen TV) to a group of thrill seekers, sponsors, drivers and an audience waiting for their favorite racer to win the race. The flag is lowered and they’re off. In the early days, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, developed in 1909, would be a testing ground for the rapidly growing auto industry. During the entire month of May, people look forward and back on the race with anticipation, wild excitement and lots of entertainment. The race is 500 miles long, which is the same as 200 laps. The best racers from around the world participate along with those who build the cars and those who have had an innovative participation in the development of those vehicles.

When we think about racing, there is always danger involved. As we race through our lives on this planet, we will run into obstacles, interference, difficulties, break downs and many, many roadblocks. God never leaves our side, even during those troubling times. We may even crash during those years, but He will give us the tools to repair the brokenness through His manual for living – the Bible. There will also be successes along the way. When those times happen, we must remember the One who made them happen and give God the glory. There will be wins and losses throughout the race. We can count on both. Putting God first, will help us to be winners even when we lose.

“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; a time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; a time to seek, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; a time to tear, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; a time to love, and a time to hate; a time for war, and a time for peace.” Ecclesiastes 3:3-8