July 24, 2022 8:00 pm
A man named James took an adventurous, 1,250-mile journey down the West Coast of the US—biking from Seattle, Washington, to San Diego, California. A friend of mine met the ambitious biker near the cliffs of Big Sur, 930 miles from his starting point. After learning that someone had recently stolen James’ camping gear, my friend offered his blanket and sweater, but James refused. He said that as he traveled south into the warmer climate, he needed to begin shedding items. And the closer he got to his destination, the more tired he became so he needed to reduce the weight he was carrying.
James’ realization was smart. It’s a reflection of what the writer of Hebrews is saying too. As we continue our journey in life, we need to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles” (12:1). We need to travel light to press on.
As believers in Jesus, running this race requires “perseverance” (v. 1). And one of the ways to ensure we can keep going is to be free of the weight of unforgiveness, pettiness, and other sins that will hinder us.
Without Jesus’ help, we can’t travel light and run this race well. May we look to the “pioneer and perfecter of faith” so that we won’t “grow weary and lose heart” (vv. 2–3).
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Welcome to today's encouragement from Our Daily Bread. Our reading, titled Traveling Light, was written by Katara Patton. A man named James took an adventurous 1,250-mile journey down the West Coast of the U.S., biking from Seattle, Washington, to San Diego, California.
A friend of mine met the ambitious biker near the cliffs of Big Sur, 930 miles from his starting point. After learning that someone had recently stolen James' camping gear, my friend offered his blanket and sweater, but James refused. He said that as he traveled south into the warmer climate, he needed to begin shedding items. And the closer he got to his destination, the more tired he became, so he needed to reduce the weight he was carrying.
James' realization was smart. It's a reflection of what the writer of Hebrews is saying, too. As we continue our journey in life, we need to throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.
We need a travel light to press on. As believers in Jesus, running this race requires perseverance, and one of the ways to ensure we can keep going is to be free of the weight of unforgiveness, pettiness, and other sins that will hinder us. Without Jesus' help, we can't travel light and run this race well. May we look to the pioneer and perfecter of faith so that we won't grow weary and lose heart.
Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Hebrews chapter 12 verses 1 through 3. Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance, the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.
For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such opposition from sinners so that we won't grow weary and lose heart. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank You for the race You've set before us. Please give us wisdom and discernment to steer clear of the sin that tries to entangle us and prevent us from running well. Thank You, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Thanks for listening today. My name is Tony Collier, and today's encouragement was provided by Our Daily Bread Ministries.
Whisper: medium.en / 2023-03-20 03:05:28 / 2023-03-20 03:06:53 / 1
