My line was tangled. Would the entire trip be ruined?
When I was a pre-teen, fishing with my grandmother on the Santee River was a favorite pastime. Neither of us could swim a lick, and our lifejackets consisted of no more than multicolored cushions with straps attached. My grandmother was a cane pole fisher. Fishing in the nooks and along the tree infested banks made tangled lines a common occurrence. She had a cure, however, that often prevented us from having to cut our lines: an empty food can with both ends removed. She would slide the can over the pole and let it meander to the end of the line. How this loosened the hook, I never understood, but it usually did.
The writer of Hebrews warns about entanglements.Runners in training often attach weights to their legs or arms to increase their strength. When they run the actual race, however, these are removed. As a believer, I’m in a race and can also be detained by weights. Some of them are sinful while others perhaps aren’t.
Only I know the particular sin that easily trips me. It’s the sin Satan uses to constantly and continually plague my mind. The sinful activity that entices me more than any other. The temptation I just can’t seem to conquer. Everyone has one, but until I identify and deal with it, it will continually entangle me…making my service for Christ less effective.
Weights that aren’t sinful but that slow me down nevertheless are also typical. They often come in the form of relationships, hobbies, work habits, sports, or even church work. Whatever steals my focus from the finish line. Whatever occupies my mind or time and prevents me from being all I could for God.
Only by confessing these weights to God and allowing him to remove them, can I run the race with endurance.
Prayer: All Powerful Savior, remove the weights that keep us from Your kingdom’s work.
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