Tag Archives: Hebrews 12:1-3

Everything That Hinders

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Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Becoming Like Christ - Day 21 - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Everything That Hinders- Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Becoming Like Christ – Day 21 – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Everything That Hinders- Growing As Disciples

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. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)  

A Race

I know that I am in a race. I know that a course has been marked out for me. There is even a cheering section surrounding me, filled with faithful men and women who have gone before me. They are spurring me on. They are encouraging me to run well. They are cheering for me. Their lives have served as a testimony. They have given me an example to follow. I want to run well. I want to persevere. I want to finish the race. I definitely don’t want to grow weary and lose heart. I will not quit. I will not give up. I will keep on moving forward with you. That is very good.

What will you do so that you will be able to run well and finish your race? First, I will throw off everything that will hinder me from running well. Like what? I won’t carry around anything extra that will weigh me down. Like what? I won’t pursue the comforts and pleasures of the world. I won’t seek after what the world has to offer. What else? Well, I won’t let sin entangle me. How will you do that? Not, with my own strength and ability alone, that is for sure. I will keep my heart and mind and life focused on you. I won’t look back. I won’t look around. I won’t waste time and effort on what will amount to nothing. I will run away from sin as I run to you. My eyes will be firmly fixed on you. I will love and follow and serve you. I will run to where you lead me. I will run to do what you ask of me. In every way and on every day, I will rely on your power and strength. You will teach me. You will train me. You are the author and perfecter of my faith. Yes, I am. You will help me to give my all. You will make me able to run well and finish strong. Yes, I will.

Lord, I will throw away everything that will hinder my running the race of faith marked out before me. I will run with perseverance as I keep my eyes firmly fixed on you. I know you will help me to run well. You will keep me from growing weary or losing heart. Amen

Key Question… What have you thrown away so that you will not be hindered in running the race marked out before you?

Living It Out… Throw away everything that hinders your ability to run the race marked out before you.

Seeing It Happen… Have faith that the Lord will help you to run the race marked out before you as you keep your eyes fixed on Him.

Get Ready To Share… Share with another person or your small group how you are keeping your eyes fixed on Jesus as you run your race.

Prayer To Bless Others… May you throw off everything that hinders your ability to run the race that has been marked out before you.

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide click here:

Becoming Like Christ – Day 21 – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Everything That Hinders – 4 Page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Run With Perseverance The Race

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The Virtuous Life - Day 192 - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Run With Perseverance The Race - Growing As Disciples

The Virtuous Life – Day 192 – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Run With Perseverance The Race – Growing As Disciples

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.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)

Focused On Me

Do you want to run well and finish strong on the course that I have marked out for you? Do you want to stay on course and not become entangled in what would hinder you in your race of faith? Do you want to keep on running so you will not grow weary and lose heart? Yes, I want to run well and finish strong. Yes, I want to stay on course and not become entangled in what would hinder me in my race of faith. What will help me to stay on course? What will help me to run well and finish strong? What will prevent me from growing weary and losing heart? Those are all good questions. You are wise in knowing that much will be much required of you if you want all these things to be true for you in your race of faith. I’m listening. What must I do? What will be required of me? First, you must receive encouragement. You must realize that many, a multitude really, have gone before you. Look at the examples of all those who have run the race of faith before you. You are surrounded by a great cloud of witness. Emulate their lives. Follow their example. Let their lives and their godly character inspire you. Know that this cloud of witnesses is not silent. They are behind you, they are beside you, they are in front of you. They are cheering loudly for you. Do what they did. What did they do? They threw off anything and everything that would prevent them from running well. They did not let themselves become entangled in sin. Nothing distracted them. Nothing diverted them. Will you follow their example? Yes, I will. That will be very good.

We are not done yet. There is more? There is much more. Those who stayed on course, have run well, and finished strong have one thing in common. What is that? They kept their eyes on me. I was the focus of their attention. They wanted to follow me to where I was leading them. They wanted to do what I was asking of them. This single-hearted and single-minded focus kept them from growing weary and losing heart. As they lived in an intimate relationship with me, they were continually refreshed and revived and strengthened. They ran with all the strength I gave them as the relied on me. As they remained in me, they lived a fruitful life. They stayed on course. They ran well. They finished strong. Will you keep your heart and mind and life focused on me? Yes, I will. That will be very good.

Lord, I will throw off anything that hinders me from running well on the course you marked out for me. I will not let sin entangle me. I will fix my eyes on you. Help me to endure any opposition with perseverance. Keep me running well. Help me to finish strong. Amen

Key Question…  How is keeping your eyes focused on Jesus helping you to not grow weary and lose heart?

Living It Out…  Fix your eyes on Jesus as you run the race of faith that is marked out for you.

Seeing It Happen…  Have faith that you will run well and finish strong as you keep your eyes focused on Jesus.

Get Ready To Share…  Share with another person or your small group how you are throwing off every hindrance to your race of faith.

Prayer To Bless Others…  May you fix your eyes On Jesus and run the race He has set before you

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide click here:

The Virtuous Life – Day 192 – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Run With Perseverance The Race – 4 Page Discipleship Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                                                        Copying not permitted                                                                                    www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Run With Perseverance

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Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Character - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Run With Perseverance - Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Character – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Run With Perseverance – Growing As Disciples

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. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)

Perseverance

You know quite a bit about running. You know a lot about perseverance. Yes, I know a lot about running with perseverance. Tell me what you know. To run with perseverance, motivation is needed at the very start. With rock solid motivation, training can begin. One cannot run well, with perseverance without daily training. Perseverance is built little by little, day by day through consistent and ongoing training. Each day of training builds upon the prior day of training. Running well, with perseverance begins with one step followed by thousands upon thousands of subsequent steps. Will you allow me to train you as you run on the course that I have laid out for you? Yes Lord, I will. That is very good. 

Let me ask you a question about what you have said so far. Go right ahead. What is your motivation to run well in your life of faith with me? You showed me your love. You saved me. You forgave all my sins. You cleansed me of all my unrighteousness. You rescued me from a life without you. You adopted me into your family. You are my Father. I am your child. I now love you because you first loved me. You gave yourself to me. So, I now want to give myself to you. I love you with all my heart and mind and soul and strength. There is no place I wouldn’t go or nothing I wouldn’t do for you. I want to live my life fully with and for you. I want to live a life that is pleasing in your sight. So, as you can see, I am highly motivated to run well in my life of faith with you. I can see that quite clearly.

I have another question about motivation. What’s that? What else motivates you to run well in your life of faith with me? Many of your followers that have gone before me have run well in their race of faith with you. Many of your followers who now surround me are running well in their race of faith with you. I am encouraged by their example. They have thrown off everything that might have hindered them from running well. They have run or are now running with perseverance the course that you have laid out for them. They have not grown weary. They have not lost heart. I want to run with that same perseverance so I can be an example for others to follow. That is very good.

One more question. I’m listening. What will help you to run strong and finish well? To run strong and finish well, I will need to keep my eyes fixed on you. A good runner does not look side to side or to the rear. They keep their eyes looking forward. That is what I will do. I will keep my eyes fixed on you as I run the race of faith you have laid out before me. You will keep me running. You will help me to run well and finish strong. Yes, I will. You can be sure of that.

Lord, I will throw off everything that hinders, entangles, and slows me down in the life of faith you have given me to live with and for you. With a joyful heart, I will keep my eyes fixed on you as I run with perseverance. Help me to run well and finish strong. Amen

Key Question…  How will fixing your eyes on Jesus Christ enable you to run with persevere and finish strong?

Living It Out…  Throw off anything from your life that hinders, entangles, or slows you down from running well and finishing strong.

Seeing It Happen…  Have faith that Jesus Christ will help you to run with perseverance as your keep your eyes on Him.

Get Ready To Share…  Share with another person or your small group the joy that you have in running the race Christ has set before you.

Prayer To Bless Others…  May you keep your eyes on the Lord as you run with perseverance the race He has set before you.

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide click here:

Character – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Run With Perseverance – 4 Page Discipleship Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Race Marked Out For Us

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Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Promises - Day 38 - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Race Marked Out For Us - Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Promises – Day 38 – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Race Marked Out For Us – Growing As Disciples

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.  Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)

Throw Away

You will need to show me that. I will need to show you what? That is a good question. Initially, I was thinking that you would need to show me one thing. Now, I think you need to show me several things. Let’s start with the first one. First, I need help to see anything that might hinder me from running well on the course that you have laid out for me. What do you have in mind? The phrasing of your question is interesting. Why is that? I’m sure that I have thought patterns that will hinder me from running well. It is my thoughts that will become my words. It is my thoughts and words that will dictate my actions. My thoughts and words and actions will define the kind of life I will live. If I hope to run well, my thoughts and words and actions will need to be in alignment with you. That is true. So, I will start by asking you to throw off any thought or word or action that will hinder me from running well on the course that you have laid out for me. That is a very good prayer to pray. That is a prayer that I will hear and answer. How do you suppose I will help you to have your thoughts and words and actions in alignment with mine? Well, you have given me some examples to follow. Tell me more about that. I have a great cloud of witnesses that surround me. What do you mean by that? Men and women of faith have gone before me. Men and women of faith are all around me. I can follow their example. I can do what they did. What did they do? They kept their heart and mind and life focused on you. Yes, they did. Will their example spur you on? Will their example encourage you to run strong and finish well in your race of faith? Yes, it will. So, I will ask you to help me to follow the examples of the great cloud of witness that have gone before me and are all around me right now. I will also ask you to help me to keep my heart and mind and life focused on you so I can run well and finish strong. Those are also good prayers to pray that I will hear and answer. Keep your heart and mind and life focused on me as you run the race I have set before you. Yes Lord, I will. That will be very good.

Lord, my eyes are on you. I will not look back or around. My entire focus will be on you. I will throw off anything that will hinder my running. Help me to run well the race you have marked out for me. I want to finish strong in the race you have given me to run. Amen

Promises – Day 38 – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Raced Marked Out For Us – 4 Page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Everything That Hinders

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Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Becoming Like Christ - Day 21 - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Everything That Hinders- Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Becoming Like Christ – Day 21 – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Everything That Hinders- Growing As Disciples

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. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)  

A Race

I know that I am in a race. I know that a course has been marked out for me. There is even a cheering section surrounding me, filled with faithful men and women who have gone before me. They are spurring me on. They are encouraging me to run well. They are cheering for me. Their lives have served as a testimony. They have given me an example to follow. I want to run well. I want to persevere. I want to finish the race. I definitely don’t want to grow weary and lose heart. I will not quit. I will not give up. I will keep on moving forward with you. That is very good.

What will you do so that you will be able to run well and finish your race? First, I will throw off everything that will hinder me from running well. Like what? I won’t carry around anything extra that will weigh me down. Like what? I won’t pursue the comforts and pleasures of the world. I won’t seek after what the world has to offer. What else? Well, I won’t let sin entangle me. How will you do that? Not, with my own strength and ability alone, that is for sure. I will keep my heart and mind and life focused on you. I won’t look back. I won’t look around. I won’t waste time and effort on what will amount to nothing. I will run away from sin as I run to you. My eyes will be firmly fixed on you. I will love and follow and serve you. I will run to where you lead me. I will run to do what you ask of me. In every way and on every day, I will rely on your power and strength. You will teach me. You will train me. You are the author and perfecter of my faith. Yes, I am. You will help me to give my all. You will make me able to run well and finish strong. Yes, I will.

Lord, I will throw away everything that will hinder my running the race of faith marked out before me. I will run with perseverance as I keep my eyes firmly fixed on you. I know you will help me to run well. You will keep me from growing weary or losing heart. Amen

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide click here:

Becoming Like Christ – Day 21 – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Everything That Hinders – 4 Page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com

Eyes On Jesus

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Discipleship Devotional Study Guide - Faith - Hebrews 12:1-3 - Eyes On Jesus - Growing As Disciples

Discipleship Devotional Study Guide – Faith – Hebrews 12:1-3 – Eyes On Jesus – Growing As Disciples

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. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Hebrews 12:1-3 (NIV)  

Run Well

I know that I am surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. There are many who have gone before me. There is a multitude of those who have run well. They have kept the faith. They have endured. They have run right up to the end of their lives and have successfully crossed the finish line. They have persevered through hardships and trials of every kind. How did they do it? How were they able to keep on running well? What kept them going? What spurred them on? Is that a rhetorical question or are you expecting me to answer your question? I am thinking out loud. I am wondering. Yes, I would you to answer my question. Your answer is right before you in my word. 

What must you do if you want to run well? What must you do if you want to successfully cross the finish line of your race of faith? First, I need to throw off anything that would hinder me from running well. What will hinder you from running well? Sin of every kind would hinder me from running well. Being conformed to the patterns of this world would hinder me from running well. Give me some examples. Fear and doubt would hinder me from running well. Lust and addictions would hinder me from running well. Being self-centered, self-indulgent, and self-sufficient would hinder me from running well. Yes, all these would hinder you from running well. What must you do next if you want to run well? I must run with perseverance. I must not give up. I must not quit. I must keep moving forward with you. The race of faith is not a short race. It is not a sprint. It is more like a marathon. Yes, it is. How will you ever have enough endurance and perseverance to keep running the race of faith? My own endurance and strength would never be enough. The only way that I will be able to keep on running is by keeping my eyes on you. I will keep on following you to where you lead me. I will keep on doing what you ask of me. I will remember that you had joy in running your race of faith. It was your pleasure to do what your Heavenly Father asked of you. I will remember that you endured opposition from sinful men. You did not grow weary. You did not lose heart. You did not give up. You did not quit. Neither will I. That will be very good.

Lord, thank you for being the author and perfecter of my faith. I will keep my eyes on you so I will live the life of faith. Give me endurance and help me to throw off any hindrance to running the race you have laid out for me. Amen

For today’s complete 4 page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide click here:

Faith – Hebrews 12-1-3 – Eyes On Jesus – 4 Page Discipleship Devotional Study Guide

Please consider sharing these devotionals with others through the social media you use.

Individual users may save the Discipleship Devotional Study Guide to their desktop for private use. All the blanks in the study guides are fields that allow typed responses. To use the fields on the study guide you may need to open the guide with a free version of adobe reader.

By Jon Ulrich © All rights reserved                   Copying not permitted                      www.GrowingAsDisciples.com