Running the race of faith (2): With singleness of mind

Hi there and welcome to October! Trust the new month met you well. I can imagine God's consistent faithfulness keeps you and your loved ones shining and winning all round! He never fails! It's by His grace we're still standing and still winning!

I'm so excited about the prospects of this month and beyond; I'm excited because I know God never keeps one for nothing, He has great things in store for us. Such things that eyes haven't seen nor ears heard! I'm sure of it! So regardless of what others say about some recession (by the way, those of us in Eden do not experience the so-called recession!), be hopeful, remain positive, and wear a smile that flows naturally (don't try to force it!) from a heart that is filled by God-birthed peace, joy and love.
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Moving on, we'd be concluding the two-part series on "running the race of faith" (anchor text: Hebrews 12:1-2) in this post by looking at a critical subject.

In part 1 of the series (anchored on verse 1 of the text), we looked at certain weights that can hinder us from running this faith race - a marathon - successfully and how to shed them...you will want to read that if you haven't...just go here.

In this second post, we'd be looking at the place of focus and devotion in running life's marathon well, titled: "Running the race of faith 2: with singleness of mind" (anchored on verse 2 of our text). Do enjoy...

Our anchor Scripture again (Hebrews 12:1-2):
"Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.


Image source: quotesgram.com

It is often said that to arrive at your destination successfully, you cannot afford to stop and throw stones at every dog that barks along the way - this is so true!

To run a marathon successfully, clinching the coveted prize at the end, you must employ an "eyes on the prize" approach. An "eyes on the prize" approach is such that nothing can distract you from your goal, and will ensure that you overcome every obstacle on your way to the accomplishment of your vision.

When you have the picture of the end you seek to accomplish firmly printed on your mind and you're focused and dedicated to seeing it realised, hurdles along the way will look more like "stepping stones" than "road blocks".

It can easily happen that you are your own hindrance to the accomplishment of your God-birthed visions and dreams (that's why we looked at shedding the weight in part 1 of this series), but after you've shed the weights, which ensures you are not your own adversary, you then have to overcome external hurdles. To do this, you need to keep your eyes firmly on the prize! Never take your eyes, and more importantly, your heart off their goal!

In verse 2 of our anchor text, Scripture admonishes us thus: "...looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith...", this can also be rendered thus: "as you run the race of faith to win the coveted prize at the end, do not take your eyes off Jesus - the goal". I particularly like how Benson Bible Commentary explained it, "Looking, literally, looking off, from all other things; unto Jesus".

The text then went on to show us a typical example of an "eyes on the prize" approach as employed by Jesus Himself: "...who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Jesus kept the picture of the "joy that was set before Him" firmly in His mind, which is why He "endured the cross, despising the shame".

What are you seeing? A bright future? A glorious end to this loooong faith race? A future where all the visions and dreams that God planted in your heart will be realised? Keep that picture firmly in your heart! Don't lose that picture, keep your eyes on it!

Yes, it's not easy (nothing is, by the way). Yes, it's hard (most things are, honestly). But with your eyes focused on the end, you can pull through.


Image source: withmatijn.com

Another angle to this "eyes on the prize" approach we should look at is devotion. Not only should you be focused on the prize, you should devote your all (not just your best) to accomplishing it.

As I mentioned in the part 1 of this series, I'm quite spontaneous (my mind is such that when ideas rain, it literally pours!) and sometimes struggle with procrastination (read the post for more on that). But I found (through the help of Holy Spirit the Revealer) that the key reason for that was because I could start a thing, and before I was done with it, I'd start something else (leaving me with multiple projects at the same time). So to overcome that, I then decided to devote myself to one thing at a time (I get more things done this way!).

Running with singleness of mind is running with focus and devotion to the prize. Keep your eyes on the goal and give your ALL to it.