{"id":38,"date":"2013-10-28T18:19:28","date_gmt":"2013-10-28T18:19:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/?p=38"},"modified":"2013-10-28T18:19:28","modified_gmt":"2013-10-28T18:19:28","slug":"run-with-perseverance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/?p=38","title":{"rendered":"Run with perseverance…"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cTherefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.\u00a0 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.\u00a0 For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.\u00a0 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.\u201d Hebrews 12:1-3<\/em><\/p>\n

I have recently started trying to hone the practice of praying specific scriptures over my life and the lives of others.\u00a0 This morning I dug out my trusty scripture box and pored over the countless verses that God has drawn my attention to over the years.\u00a0 I flipped through each one and selected nine that are just perfect for this season in my life.\u00a0 I also found scriptures for Gilbert, for William, for friends and extended family.\u00a0 Some overlap and I pray the same verse over multiple people, while others are specific to individuals in their present circumstances.<\/p>\n

I stumbled upon Hebrews 12:1-3 and set that card aside for me. \u00a0I have read those verses, spoken them, and reflected on them throughout my life, but they called to me with new significance this morning.\u00a0 The message of running a race with perseverance perfectly fits this season of motherhood and I seized upon them.\u00a0 As a new mama, I am in a marathon, not a 5k, and need God\u2019s continual provision to remain faithful in living as the wife and mother He has called me to be.<\/p>\n

When I prayed these verses out loud this morning, I imagined myself running in an actual race and vividly pictured the scene.\u00a0 Hair in a pony tail, sweat running from my brow, I could see myself jogging along, the sound of footsteps and shallow breaths filling my ears.\u00a0 When I got to the portion about \u201cfixing our eyes on Jesus\u201d I paused to consider what that would look like in my scene.\u00a0 Am I looking ahead of me?\u00a0 Looking at Him running beside me?\u00a0 Running with my eyes up to the heavens?<\/p>\n

The more I thought about it, the more I pictured all of the other things that would be vying for my attention as I ran along.\u00a0 Different portions of the race would yield different temptations to take my eyes off of Him and focus elsewhere.\u00a0 Knowing myself, there would be times that the temptation to check out the crowds to my left and right would steal my attention.\u00a0 Are the people around me cheering or are they snickering about how slowly I am running?<\/i>\u00a0 In other moments, I know I would be tempted to look down the road\u2014how much longer do I have to go?\u00a0 Are there hills up ahead?<\/i>\u00a0 In still other times, I would be tempted to look behind me, indulging in pride about how far I had run.\u00a0 Look at me!!<\/i>\u00a0 These are common temptations I face every day in the race I am running\u2014I\u2019m not even going into the distractions that come when obstacles arise, when weariness sets in, or when the weather changes.<\/p>\n

There are so many other places to set my sights that I have to be intentional every day to focus my eyes on Him.\u00a0 For me, this means taking a cue from Psalm 5:3 and going to God in the morning, before the day is in full swing.\u00a0 I complete Bible study homework, read scripture, and spend time just talking to God.\u00a0 There is a noticeable difference in the days that I do this\u2014I am more centered, I have greater peace, and my perspective on life is tremendously impacted.\u00a0 Without this focus, I frequently veer off course and barely limp along.<\/p>\n

This is a race and running well requires dedication.\u00a0 While I am not competing against anyone else, I am called to take every day that God blesses me with and run it faithfully.\u00a0 This will not happen by accident, I must be intentional.<\/p>\n

In the end, I decided that fixing my eyes on Jesus, means that I am running while looking directly in front of me.\u00a0 That\u2019s where I imagine Him to be\u2014a few steps ahead so that He can guide me along the path, while in the perfect position to encourage my every step. \u00a0What a mighty God we serve.\u00a0 Oh that I would be so faithful to train my eyes on Him alone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cTherefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.\u00a0 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.\u00a0 For the joy set […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[9],"class_list":["post-38","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-jamees-musings","tag-faith"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=38"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38\/revisions\/39"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=38"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=38"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/notsoshortterm.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=38"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}