Their fame and crown were soon forgotten and valueless. However, the crown and fame of the genuine Christian runner will never pass away. The prizes God gives a self-disciplined Christian are a crown and fame that are incorruptible. Self-disciplined believers shall live and be rewarded with an eternal fame and with the most real and valued crowns imaginable. A believer develops self-discipline as an athlete does when he runs and fights with certainty and without distraction.
Effort is necessary, effort that sacrifices and strains to the point of hurting.
A Christian runs with certainty and without distraction, because a believer knows where the track is, knows where the lines on the track are, and knows where the finish line is. Sometimes active, other times inactive. Sometimes practicing, other times laying out. Sometimes controlling, other times indulging. Sometimes staying in the lines, other times moving out.