Against all Odds

Hebrews 12:1 

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, 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,

Melissa Stockwell, a U.S. Army Purple Heart recipient, lost her leg when a roadside bomb exploded during a convoy in 2004. Instead of giving up on life, after much physical therapy she trained for the 2008 Paralympic Games. Her dedication and determination made her the record holder for the 100 meter butterfly, and the 100 meter freestyle.  She said, “I can really do anything I want to do, missing leg or not.”

Other athletes like Anthony Robles, who was born with one leg, became the NCAA wrestling champion for the 125 pound class. Legally blind Twenty-four year old Im Dong-Hyun, won two Olympic gold medals in archery. Carrie Johnson, battling an autoimmune disorder that causes pain, fatigue, and weight loss is competing for the third time in the sprint canoeing event for the Olympic Games. She refuses to let Crohn’s disease hold her back. 

Just as some athletes face physical limitations, we too experience difficulties or sin that would hinder us from becoming His star achievers. In Heb. 12:1 we’re instructed to: …lay aside every weight and the sin which doth so easily beset us. We’re to put aside failures of the past, quit carrying around the sin that He no longer remembers. He said in Ps. 103:12:  As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. If He has forgotten our sin, why should we dig up old bones?

All great athletes will push through the pain and look toward the finish line. We too should …run with patience, the race that is set before us, (Heb. 12:1).

Keep your eye on the finish line, (our heavenly home).  Serve Him with all your heart, and finish a winner.

Recommended reading: Hebrews 12:1-3

Quote:

If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right.

Henry Ford

By: Louis Edwards

Note: The excerpts mentioned about the athelets in this devotion were found in www.beliefnet.com