Get Past It!
Today, our focus is going to be on rising past the obstacles in our lives. As we go through life, there will always be something that stands between us and God. Maybe that "something" is anger. Maybe it's disappointment. Maybe it's shame from the past. These things may seem impossible to move, but the truth is that we cannot soar until we have dealt with them. Far too many people try to move forward with these weights tied to their ankles; each step is long, hard, and exhausting. But because of Christ, we don't have to be weighed down by these things. We can rise past them. We can soar.
So what does it mean to rise past something? Consider Hebrews 12:1: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us." The Apostle Paul compares the Christian life to a race that we all must run. He never says that this race will be easy; instead, he urges us to run with endurance. He urges us to shake off whatever is holding us back from sprinting toward Christ with reckless abandon.
What's holding you down?
What things are chaining you down? Are you still caught up in emotional roller coasters of yesterday's gone? Does your mind still dwell on disappointment? Does your heart still bear scars of abuse? All these shackles look different for everyone. But the good news is that Jesus came to set us free from such things. When you think that you can never get past it, Jesus says you can. You may not know how, but He has promised to give you the strength and the grace to do it. Why? Because He loves you. He has so much in store for you, and perhaps you cannot even see it past the worries of today.
You see, we cannot soar if we are still chained to the sorrows of this earth. We were created for something much bigger, something cosmic, something divine. The struggles we face are what Paul would call "light momentary afflictions." When we learn to look past these things, our eyes will be opened to something completely new and different. We will be set free. Galatians 5:1 says, "For freedom, Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery."
Its time to "Rise Past It!"
God has a plan for us, and yet we often allow fear and despair to rule our lives. When Jesus died on the cross and rose again, He claimed victory over sin and death and suffering once and for all. And He will grant you victory over your own personal battles if only you let Him. He is bigger than any obstacle that stands before us. Will you come to Him? Will you shake off these chains and rise past them?
