Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.

- Hebrews 12.1

Game three of the 2018 World Series took longer to play than the entire 1936 Series. In the bottom of the eighteenth, after seven hours and twenty minutes, Dodgers slugger Max Muncy parked the 561st pitch of the night over the left-field fence for a walk-off homer that nudged the final score to 3-2. It was 3:30 in the morning. Red Sox reliever Nathan Eovaldi threw a record-breaking ninety-seven pitches over seven innings. At one point, the Dodgers clubhouse chef sent a round of peanut butter and banana sandwiches to the dugout to fortify the weary players.

Baseball, unlike football or basketball, has no clock and no ties. The game lasts until somebody wins. 

The author of Hebrews calls on Christians to exercise an extra-inning faith. Let us run with perseverance. The Christian life is not a sprint but a marathon, a lifelong slog with a moving finish line. It is less about speed than about steadiness; staying focused counts for more than being fancy; it is a contest where the most important ability is durability.

Despite all the doomsday box scores configured by an endless line of debunked latter-day prophets, the Church really doesn't know where she stands. Is this the ninth inning? The third? The eighteenth? The next crack of the bat may be the clarion call that heralds Our Lord's return, or just one more steady swing. 

So run today's race today; play well the inning you face. Feast on the fortified food of the faith then grab your glove and go out there again. . .and again. . .and again. Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us.