Good News

We forget it is good news. I was reading Romans 1:1-17 in my one year Bible, and I was once again reminded that the fact that Jesus came,lived,died and loved for the gentiles is good news. I was reminded and I smiled. Then I went into an interview for our Preschool principal. She mentioned how she loves starting the day with chapel because we need to be reminded every day of the good news of Jesus. Wow, I was blown away. So in case you forgot, the fact that Jesus came, lived,died and loved for you is good news.

Feel like quitting because....

"Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin, which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…" Hebrews 12:1,2

"Let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." Hebrews 10:24,25

During a prayer meeting, a friend asked God to help someone “break through the quitting points.” That reminded me of my college years when my friend, Sly, and I would meet early in the mornings to go running. It was always hard to get going and it seemed that we alternated days wanting to quit early. Knowing this, we both had to take the responsibility to not give in to the feeling, but to encourage the other to keep going a little further. Inevitably, we would hit a point where we felt better and could seemingly run for days. Equally inevitable was the fact that when one of us ran without the other, we found that we were more likely to quit earlier, running a shorter distance and time. The key to success was to “break through the quitting points.”

You arrive at quitting points when...
... physical output (work, exercise, busyness) exceeds your input (rest, food, conditioning)
... emotional output (relationships, empathy/sympathy, fear) exceeds your emotional intake (encouragement, laughter, love, hope)
... spiritual output (ministry, life) exceeds your spiritual intake (Bible reading, prayer, time with God)

Long distance runners call this “hitting the wall” – the point where you simply run out of energy. So how do we break through the quitting points? Here are 3 factors you must take into consideration when you are ready to give up.

Consider your witnesses. When I read Hebrews 12:1, I get a picture of me running in a race of faith where the streets and stands are filled with all the people who throughout the years have set examples for, taught, mentored and challenged me. They are there to see how well I will put into practice what I have learned from them. Their “presence” should motivate and inspire us to fight on and not dishonor their input and sacrifice.

Consider your God. No one has ever had a more difficult course to run than our Lord Jesus Christ. We need to look at his life, his practices, his attitude and mimic those things in our lives. How did he handle disappointment and frustration? How did handle temptation and fear? How did he handle busyness and pressure? Yes, Jesus was God, but he was also fully man, experiencing life in all of its ugliness, just as we do. We should observe and follow his example.

Consider your fellow saints. We don’t run this race alone. If it is only about “me” then we become selfish. If it is only about “others” we become martyrs. When it is about “us” and “we”, we become family. We need to think about how can we encourage fellow saints who have become worn out in the journey, whose hearts are broken and spirits have become weary. But we also need to admit that there are times when we are the one’s who are in need of the encouragement. We can’t allow our pride or privacy to cause us to hide our need from others. We are a part of the body of Christ – we are interdependent on each other. Acknowledging that we need others is not an indication of weakness, but of wisdom.

The question is not if you will come to a “quitting point”, but when. The bigger question is what will you do to get through it? Think about it.
(this was written by John P. - not me. But I thought it was worth posting)