Last Month, we started the series “Running the Race” at our Santa Rosa campus. The Lord had been impressing in my heart to remind myself and others that we are all in a race that our lives are like being in a race. Sometimes, people are not aware, that is why they don’t run. Some are aware but they don’t want to run it. They want another race according to their preference. I think it is important to get an understanding of what the bible says about our lives—likening it to a race. Hebrews 12:1 says,

“1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.”

It says that there were people before us that set an example and lived a life of faith when they were running their own race and that some of the names were actually mentioned in a chapter before. The Likes of David, Abraham, and Moses are people that paved the way for us, and their lives can remind us that faith can help you run the race and will take you to the finish line. However, the latter part of the verse is what caught my attention. There were 2 things that were highlighted in my spirit as I read this verse and that’s what I want to share with everyone.

The first one is the part that says “let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.” It says to strip off every weight that slows us down and highlighted the sins that entangle us in our lives. It is easy for us to apply this verse and say “I’m in!” For some of us, we actually like the idea of unloading the negative stuff that is in our lives, like the sufferings we are enduring in the present. It can be easy to pick those and say “Ok God, it’s yours now” and then we move on with our lives. It can be our pains, our broken relationships, failing businesses, debts, etc. Then, I realized that it’s not just bad stuff that slows us down. Even some good stuff in life can slow us down, if we are not supposed to carry it in the race. Sometimes even activities in our lives with good motivation behind them can be an extra weight that we carry in the race and can slow us down. It’s like knowing that a helmet is beneficial when you trip and will protect your head from any injury, but at the same time it slows you down in the race. In real life it can be a business that might give you your retirement funds, but according to God’s will for your life, it is not the business you should be involved with. It could be a boyfriend or girlfriend that you have been desiring, but you are pursuing the wrong person. It was good motive but the wrong person. Runners wear an outfit as light as possible eliminating anything that can slow them down. I’ve never seen a runner wear an astronaut suit in a race. Sometimes we carry weights that we are not supposed to run with and they slow us down.

Second is the part that says “And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us”. What it tells me is that there is a race that God Himself had set before us. He has marked the lanes where we are supposed to run. I firmly believe in obeying the will of God in our lives. It’s so affirming to know that He Himself had set that race for you and that we should not be making our own race. If he has set it, there are boundaries and rules to His race, and we should run that race and not somebody else. We are also told to run this race with endurance, and it has been exemplified by the amazing men and women in Hebrews chapter 11. Endurance is defined as the ability to do something for a long period of time. This race we call life is a long period of time. We need to endure everything that will meet us in our lives. The more unnecessary weight we carry, the easier it will be for us to get tired and not be able to run as efficiently and in some cases could injure us or stop us.

I love what John Piper said about this verse. He said people ask “is this is a sin?” They are worried about whether the thing that they have or do is a sin. In this generation it’s hard to get a clear answer because of the relativism that people have about a certain act or situation. He goes on to say that people with this question are not asking the right question and that it is possibly the lowest question a Christian can ask in their lives. The question is not whether it is a sin or not, instead we should ask. “Does this help me run?”