The Word “No” Is Important for My Spiritual Journey

In Hebrews 12:1 it says, “Let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up.” (NLT)

The most important word to remember for my spiritual journey may be a surprising one: no.

My faith journey is a long one. Often people start off well in their spiritual journey but putter out before the end. God wants me to go the distance.  

I’ve got a marathon ahead of me, and I can’t run it with a barbell in my hands. People often quit their faith journey early because everything they’re carrying wears them out.

I need to declutter.

A cruise liner can get pretty fast in the middle of the water, but if it’s dragging a hundred lifeboats alongside it, it will slow it down. Plug a battery into one light bulb, and it’ll go a long way. Plug it into 15, and it drains much more quickly. Plug it into 100, and it’ll drain even more quickly.

That’s what happens when I try to do too much. Sometimes doing good keeps me from doing the best.

Hebrews 12:1 says, “Let us strip off every weight that slows us down” (NLT). 

Weights aren’t bad; they’re not sinful. They’re just unnecessary. So what is the weight in my life? It’s likely something that slows me down from what God wants from my life. And it’s not worth it.

It’s time for me to “strip off every weight” that’s slowing me down.

I am not alone. Others have run the race and won, and I can use their witness to stir me to run and win as well. I need to consider having friends that are committed to the race and or make wise choices in who I choose to run with. I can drop certain activities that may not prove beneficial. I can reach out and get help for things that are disabling me. I need to give up whatever might endanger my relationship with God.