Clearing Our Obstacles

Track and field contain some of the best trained and conditioned athletes on the planet. It is amazing to watch them demonstrate a combination of God-given ability and sheer determination. One of the events is the hurdles. If you have ever watched (or attempted) the hurdles, there is no doubt you have experienced the thrill of victory and the pain of defeat. Many athletes have suffered horrific injuries when they are unable to clear a hurdle, which has a lasting impact on the rest of their race.

In the Bible, Christians are compared to an athlete competing in the hurdles. In Hebrews 12:1, the writer tells us, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. Just like a hurdler, we can get “tripped up” if we try to run our race to fast. When choosing to follow Jesus while we journey on this earth the devil tries to throw obstacles in our path hoping that we will trip over them injuring us spiritually.

What are some of the things that can weigh us down? One of our biggest obstacles is the world in which we live. It seems we are constantly flooded with negative news (or is it our view?). At times, it seems like there is just no hope. As I grow in my faith, there have been several occasions when I feel utterly alone in a crowd full of people.

Our jobs can be another obstacle in our walk with God. Though the Bible is clear one of the reasons we were created was to work, do we put so much emphasis on our jobs that it becomes the top of our priorities and center of our identity? One of the most deceptive obstacles we face is worry. We can be consumed by it to the point where we become afraid of living by faith and paralyzed by its power. And lastly, but maybe just as importantly, we face the obstacles of ourselves. Our race can and does become hindered by self-inflicted wounds of stress and pain.

Do you feel like you keep running into hurdles in your life? If so, I encourage you to go back to the starting blocks and make sure you are running the race in the way Jesus wants you to..

Pastor Aaron