Chris Howlett

A Derby Day Devotional

“The race is not always to the swift, but to those who keep on running.” — Anonymous

All across Louisville this week, excitement has been building for the 151-year tradition we call the Kentucky Derby. In a mere two minutes today, the world will watch thoroughly trained three-year-olds thunder down the track at Churchill Downs, chasing a garland of roses and a place in history — “the greatest two minutes in sports.” 

Those two minutes, however, are the culmination of years of purposeful breeding, disciplined training, and unwavering focus. Owners invest fortunes; trainers fine-tune every workout; jockeys study every stride. No one just shows up on Derby Day and hopes for the best.

As I think about that, Paul’s words ring in my ears: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24, ESV).

The Christian life is a race of far more significance than a mile and a quarter on dirt. Yet, we sometimes approach it casually, assuming spiritual growth will simply happen. The Derby reminds us that purpose, discipline, and perseverance matter.

Thoroughbreds log countless laps before the starting gate ever opens. Likewise, time in Scripture, prayer, and community forms the spiritual muscle memory we need when life’s track turns muddy. Each horse has a unique running style—front-runner, stalker, closer. God has crafted you with gifts, talents, and strengths that are yours alone. Don’t waste energy comparing yourself to the horse in the next stall. The roar of the crowd grows deafening in the stretch. Hebrews 12:1 urges us to “run with perseverance the race marked out for us,” fixing our eyes on Jesus, the Champion who already secured the ultimate victory.

This Derby Day, as the twin spires loom over Louisville and the call to post sounds, let that trumpet remind you: your life, too, is headed toward a finish line. Lace up your faith. Lean into the turn. And run so as to win the prize that will never fade.

Searching for Hope

Photo by Shayla

One of the most searched terms on Google for the past five years has been the word “hope.” Searches for hope have outpaced searches for politics, technological breakthroughs, and even the ever-popular “how to make money online.” People are searching for something deeper in an increasingly shallow and spiritually empty culture.

News has always been negative because negativity sells, but in recent years there has been an emphasis on potentially life-limiting threats. We can be overwhelmed by climate anxiety, economic uncertainty, social media fueled existential dread. Government, education, entertainment, and the media are increasingly proving unreliable and even detrimental to emotional and spiritual wholeness. And so, people are searching for hope.

We Christ-followers live in a time of historic opportunity. The hope people aren’t finding in the post-modern world is offered in the Gospel. Jesus Christ came to forgive and transform us into the people God created us to be. Meaning and fulfillment, so fleeting in the secular world, are abundant in Christian community. Many of us in the Church have been praying for a Great Awakening. The fields are ripe for the harvest, let’s go out and be laborers in sharing the Good News about Jesus Christ so others can find the hope they desperately need.

One God

February 23rd marks the Feast Day of Saint Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna, an ancient city in modern-day Turkey. Martyred in 156 A.D., Polycarp refused to burn incense to Caesar, a gesture that would have acknowledged Caesar as a divine being. He steadfastly refused to acknowledge or worship any false deity.

The Roman Empire, during which the early Church flourished, was characterized by pagan religious pluralism. The Romans worshipped numerous gods, and nearly every city had its own local deity. Religious minority groups within the Roman religious landscape worshipped their own gods, and it was not perceived as a betrayal of the polytheistic system because they also acknowledged the gods of others. Sounds similar to our modern attempt at pluralism, where we say, “You do you.”

In such a supposedly pluralistic atmosphere, why were the Romans so intolerant of Christians? Why did they feed them to lions or burn them at the stake? Christians, both then and now, recognize only one God and no others. There is only one God, and he has no rivals. The Romans demanded that Christians participate in the prevailing civic religion, paying homage to the city’s god and Caesar. While Christians were free to worship Jesus as a god if they chose, they were also required to acknowledge the gods of Rome.

Jews were exempt from this requirement. As a conquered and ancient ethnic group, their monotheistic beliefs were tolerated by Rome. However, Christianity was viewed as a novel religion, not rooted in ethnicity. Worshipping God in exclusion of others was seen as an implicit attempt to undermine familiar societal structures and the very foundations and security of the empire. The rapid spread of Christianity further heightened this sense of threat.

Christians were expected to adhere to societal norms, just like everyone else. For the Romans, the well-being of the empire hinged on maintaining the gods’ favor, as this was the key to sustaining strength. By keeping the gods pleased, one could ensure the prosperity of the nation. Given their religiously exclusive claims, Christians were perceived as “atheists” and, consequently, traitors who could potentially undermine the well-being of society.

Polycarp, a disciple of the Apostle John, played a pivotal role in preserving and transmitting apostolic teachings. As one of the Apostolic Fathers, his influence significantly shaped the early Church, particularly in addressing heresies such as Gnosticism.

His martyrdom, documented in The Martyrdom of Polycarp, stands as one of the earliest and most comprehensive accounts of Christian martyrdom. Arrested and brought before Roman authorities, he faced pressure to renounce Christ but steadfastly refused. In a famous declaration, he proclaimed, “Eighty-six years I have served Him, and He has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?” Subsequently, he was subjected to burning at the stake, though tradition holds that the flames did not consume him, leading to his subsequent stabbing death.

What we believe matters. Our confession has both temporal and eternal consequences. Polycarp serves as an exemplar of faithfulness in the face of opposition and persecution. May we be found faithful in our time.

Hope

Image by Gerd Altmann

Each baby born into the world represents hope. Think about it: when parents choose to bring a child into the world, it’s an act of optimism—a belief that the future holds promise. Every generation dreams that their children will live fulfilling and meaningful lives. Yes, babies also bring sleepless nights and endless worries (we’ll leave that for another conversation), but at their core, they embody hope.

Today, hope feels scarce in many parts of the Western world. Declining birth rates reveal a growing fear—that the future is bleak, that our children may inherit a world filled with despair rather than joy. What’s fueling this crisis of hope?

A significant factor is the dominant worldview of secular humanism. This perspective, which denies the existence of God, places humanity at the center of meaning and hope. Yet, when the human spirit falters and society struggles, secular humanism leaves many feeling empty and directionless. Despite our unparalleled prosperity, technological advances, and wealth of information, we are more spiritually impoverished than ever. Our houses are bigger, but they feel emptier. We are more connected online, but lonelier in reality. 

Hope, however, is essential. Without it, we cannot thrive. As the saying goes, you can survive fourteen days without food, two days without water, but not even two seconds without hope.

Thankfully, there are signs of a shift. Columnist Ross Douthat recently observed in The New York Times:

There is statistical evidence that the latest wave of secularization has reached some sort of limit. There is suggestive cultural evidence that secular liberalism has lost faith in itself, that many people miss not just religion’s moral vision but also its metaphysical horizons, that the arguments for religious belief might be getting a new hearing. Notre-Dame de Paris has been rebuilt from its ashes.   – Ross Douthat, December 21, 2024  

Remarkably, the rise of the “spiritual Nones” in the U.S. has plateaued after decades of rapid growth. Douthat suggests that a Christian revival may be on the horizon. He may be right. 

The hope the world desperately needs will never be found in the hollow promises of secular humanism. True hope is found in the radical truth that there is a God—a God who created the cosmos, who placed the stars in the sky, and who breathes life into his creation. This same God entered our broken world as one of us, born as a baby in Bethlehem. His name is Jesus, and he is the hope that sustains us, the light that shines in the darkness.

Today, we celebrate his birth. Let this be a day of joyful reflection and renewed hope. God is moving, and his work is far from finished. Let us open our hearts to him and join in his mission.

To Seek and Save the Lost

Photo by Todd Trapani

A 3-year-old boy in Alto, Wisconsin, wandered into a cornfield next to his home while chasing a cat. His parents called for help after losing sight of him in the vast 100-acre field. As night approached, deputies searched nearby homes and barns without success, prompting them to search the cornfield on foot. Thankfully, a police drone equipped with a thermal imaging camera quickly located the boy around 9:30 p.m. Deputies guided by the drone rescued him, and he was safely reunited with his parents. The boy had innocently followed a cat, but the situation could have turned dangerous without the technology and teamwork used in the search.

This story reminds me of the lengths to which God goes to search for us when we’re spiritually lost. Like the boy who wandered away chasing something harmless, we can sometimes find ourselves lost, having pursued things that seemed insignificant or innocent at the time. But God, much like the deputies and technology used in this rescue, is relentless in his pursuit of us. 

If you’ve wandered from God, or you know someone has wandered to a “far country” or just a cornfield, then know that God is searching. He won’t give up until the lost are found.

How Much Lead in Your Applesauce?

“Holiness is not the privilege of a chosen few – it is the obligation, the call, and the will of God for every Christian.” – Mother Angelica

How much lead do you like in your applesauce? None, you say? Well, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise if you or your children consumed certain cinnamon-flavored applesauce sold in grocery and dollar stores last year. According to a story in The New York Times, the Food and Drug Administration identified a spice grinder in Ecuador as the likely source of contamination for potentially three million applesauce pouches sold in the United States.

Children in forty-four states ate the tainted sauce. Some of it contained alarmingly high levels of lead. But, even a small amount of lead in applesauce is too much.

How much sin do you think God wants in your life? About as much lead as you want in your kid’s applesauce. Zero. None. Nada. Yet, we often justify sin. We think, “No one is tempted the way I am.” “I’m only human.” “I just can’t help myself.” These are the enemy’s lies.

Everyone faces similar temptations (1 Cor. 10:13); to be human is to be like Jesus (Philippians 2:7); and, God can make you holy (1 Thess. 5:23-24). God wants to fill your life to overflowing with his love and Holy Spirit, leaving no room for sin.

During Lent, examine yourself and invite the Lord to open your heart to the fullness of his grace. Allow him to transform you into the person he created you to be.

__________________

Image by Taken from Pixabay

Contagious Joy

“Joy does not simply happen to us. We have to choose joy and keep choosing it every day.” – Henri Nouwen

According to C.S. Lewis, both good and bad things can be contagious. Just like standing near a fire makes you warm and getting into water makes you wet, if you want to experience joy, power, peace, and eternal life, you need to be close to or even immersed in the source of these qualities. They are not simply prizes God distributes to anyone; rather, they are the fundamental forces of energy and beauty that exist at the core of reality. If you are near this source, you will be touched by its influence, but if you are distant, you will remain unaffected.

Choosing joy means choosing to be with Jesus, the source of all joy. This is what we celebrate at Christmas, the gift of God’s Son, our Savior and Lord. It’s in and through a relationship with him that joy is encountered. I hope this season you will evaluate in what you’re immersed and turn your heart to the Christ of Joy.

Jesus Is King

10.9 million Americans woke up early on the first Saturday in May, not for the Derby, but for the Coronation of King Charles III of the United Kingdom. What amazes me about this number is not how large it is, though it’s huge for a televised event, especially that early, but how it compares to the viewers in the UK, who numbered 18.8 million. He’s their king! And they didn’t have to wake up early, yet they couldn’t even double the American audience!

It’s interesting how we went to a lot of trouble to free ourselves from a monarchy, yet we’re still awfully fascinated with all things royal.

While King Charles’ realm doesn’t extend to the States, there is a King whose kingdom is over the whole of creation and who’s worthy of our allegiance: King Jesus. Today is the celebration of the Ascension of Christ, when Jesus ascended into heaven and was seated at the right hand of the Father until he returns to judge the living and the dead. We’re living in his reign as his servants, and we want to serve his Kingdom purposes.

I don’t know how long Charles’ reign will last before William takes his place, but I do know that Jesus’ Kingdom is forever, and I want to be a part of that Kingdom now and into eternity. “His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed” (Daniel 7:14 ESV).

The Extra Mile

“There’s no traffic jam on the extra mile.” – Anonymous

Christians have been observing Holy Week for hundreds of years. We memorialize Jesus’ journey to the cross and his resurrection. We set this time aside for focused devotion to God, remembering his acts of salvation through Jesus Christ.

This Holy Week, in addition to the sense of repentance that we feel in light of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, we may want to take it a step deeper. As we examine our lives, we realize we have plenty of sin of which to repent. We need to do this, but what if we turn our penance positive?

Roman law demanded Jews to carry the pack of a soldier for one mile. Jesus, like so many other things, ups the ante, so to speak. He encouraged his fellow Jews to not resist a Roman soldier, but carry his pack an additional mile. How this must have irked some of his more revolutionary-minded followers!

God first loved us, so we love others. Some contemporaries of Jesus hearing this for the first time must have thought he was a bit mad. But this is exactly the kind of selfless ethic the King who came to serve taught. Go the extra mile, turn the other cheek, love your enemy, judge not, take up your cross daily, etc.

This Holy Week, let’s follow Jesus’ lead and live lives of holy love, serving people God brings into our path so they see Jesus in us.

____________________

Photo by Lukas Hartmann: Pexels

Positive Change in the New Year

“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better person.” – Benjamin Franklin

What changed Saturday night? The day moved from Saturday to Sunday, the month from December to January, the year from 2022 to 2023. The date changed. This calendar change is different, however. With the New Year we experience a sense of hope, of new beginnings, and new possibilities. We’d like to think something significant might change.

The Christian faith is about change. We’re called to repent, turn to God, and believe the Good News. When we commit our lives to Christ it’s a huge change. This change ushers in more change as the Holy Spirit transforms us. The Apostle Paul wrote: “And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18 NIV). Just like any New Year’s resolution, the transformation we call discipleship requires effort on our part as we cooperate with the Holy Spirit.

What does God want to change in you this year? What vices or bad habits is he calling you to leave behind? What life-giving habits is he calling you to jump start? What kind of impact does God want you to make? God’s love transforms when we’re open to him. What’s going to change this year? You can!

**For help jumpstarting the habit of daily Bible Reading, check out this video.

_______________________

Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay