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Witnesses

             Therefore, 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, (Hebrews 12:1)

Normally, it seems as if we describe the great cloud of witnesses as the angels and those who are watching from Heaven. We may include those within the Church today, or maybe those who come in the future who might hear our stories (which will be difficult because most of us don’t write our stories for fear we’ll discover we don’t have one. We’re wrong about that, but that’s another post.) But what if our main audience at least includes those who don’t know us, but who happen to encounter us once in passing? Or what if it includes (significantly) those who don’t agree with us and aren’t our friends? Our enemies?

When I was working on my family’s history, I asked a few people to write a brief autobiography or personal sketch. Unfortunately, they gave me the same answer I would likely give if someone asked me the same thing. “Oh, they wouldn’t be interested in my life. It’s boring.” I tried pointing out that Captain Samuel Ransom and Colonel George Palmer Ransom would probably have said the same thing. They were farmers and soldiers. Boring. If you asked the Children of Israel, they’d probably say the same thing. Lots of wandering around, lots of suffering and the most miserable menu choices… Boring. What you think boring might be exactly what someone else would be thrilled to hear, or helped by hearing it.

As we move on through the passage, we’re told to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” We need to pay attention to what we tend to brush past. Not all that prevents us from running is sin. It might be things we believe that aren’t so. It might be a very legitimate thing that prevents us from doing one thing, and we assume it prevents us from doing anything. Things that hinder might include misconceptions about love, relationships, duty, or direction. This isn’t a suggestion that we abandon our families, but what if you are doing something for your family that they could do for themselves while you do what God is calling you to? Could you do something after the kids have gone to bed? I don’t know what, if anything, is hindering you, but it’s something we should discuss with God regularly. 

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