If I Were an Olympic Athlete...

If I were an Olympic athlete (go ahead and laugh...get it out of your system now...) 

If I were an Olympic athlete, what would you think of me if I tried to run the twenty-yard dash wearing combat boots and a woolen overcoat?

Or what if I tried to jump hurdles or participate in the pole vaulting competition with twenty-pound weights strapped to my ankles?  What would you think?

Or what if I tried to swim the 200 meter freestyle while wearing handcuffs and thermal underwear?  Would you expect me to beat the record set by Michael Phelps?

Perhaps I would be able to  finish those particular events in spite of those unusual hindrances, but in no way could I expect to win a medal.  Athletes who want to win medals always rid themselves of unnecessary weight or entanglements.

Some verses from the twelfth chapter of Hebrews have me pondering some of my own unnecessary weight and entanglements....  Maybe you've read this before: 

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, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith....(Hebrews 12:1-2a KJV)

When I ran across these verses again the other day, the Bible app on my phone was set to show verses in the Amplified Version, so here's how I actually read it:

Therefore then, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses [who have borne testimony to the Truth], let us strip off and throw aside every encumbrance (unnecessary weight) and that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the race that is set before us, Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection].... (Hebrews 12:1-2a AMP)

 The apostle Paul compares the Christian to a runner in a race.  In 1 Corinthians 9:24, he reminds us that in a race, all runners run, but only one receives the prize.  Then, he encourages us to run in such a way that we may win.  I'm not suggesting that we achieve salvation through performance--salvation was made possible by the broken body and shed blood of Jesus Christ upon the cross, and it was proven to be true by His glorious return from the grave three days later.  "For by grace you have been saved through  faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast" (Ephesians 4:8-9). 

So no, I'm not talking about earning salvation.  I'm talking about the lives we live once we become children of God --the lives that we live out as representatives of Christ while a lost world looks on. 

It's difficult to represent Jesus well when we are encumbered with unnecessary weights and entanglements.  Hebrews 12 makes a distinction between the "weights" and "sin."  Unnecessary weights could simply be distractions or activities that are not enhancing or improving our Christian lives; rather, they keep our attentions diverted from the One on whom we should focus.  They may slow us down and keep us from making the most of opportunities to actually be the hands and feet of Jesus while we are on this planet.

As for "sin" that can so easily "beset" or "entangle" us... well, sin just gets us tangled into a web of trouble that leads only to heartache, pain, and regret.

So, I'm thinking about the unnecessary weights and entanglements that may be keeping me distracted, slowing me down, or causing much regret.  Here are just a few that I need to consider stripping off and throwing aside....



(Please don't judge me.  Phil and I vowed to avoid meats and sweets this week, and I have two ENORMOUS jars of nutella in my kitchen that are screaming for my attention right now....)

While none of those images above are sinful, they are--for yours truly--distractions that slow me down in my race as a Christian and even in my life as a wife and mom.  One might argue that those things are good gifts that God wants us to enjoy (especially the Nutella), but when my attention is diverted for too long and my focus shifts away from Christ as my Chief object of desire, then I have a problem.  And you know, it's very easy for today's unnecessary weight  to become tomorrow's besetting sin.  I don't think Jesus necessarily expects me to completely banish these distractions from my life forever, but I believe He would appreciate me putting them to the side for a while so I can re-focus my energies on the Person and the things that matter.

[at this point you'll observe that I am intentionally avoiding a discussion of weight that is measured in pounds and weight that could serve as an indicator of laziness or gluttony in a person's life....God help us]

Lord, help me keep my eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of my faith.  While I'm here, I want to run the race well.  I don't want to miss the people and opportunities He places in my path because I'm too busy scrolling through Pinterest or Facebook.

I think I need to start unlacing my "combat boots" and stripping off my "woolen overcoat."  How about you?  Is anything slowing you down?

----------one last picture that I swiped from a blog post that a friend shared--------

This picture was posted with the caption "How to Miss a Childhood."  Below is the link to the entire blog post.  It will  simultaneously step on your toes and break your heart.  It's also fitting food for thought for anyone else who is pondering possible hindrances.

http://www.handsfreemama.com/2012/05/07/how-to-miss-a-childhood/