Everything?

What hinders you from being strong spiritually? From spending time in the Word? From spending time in fervent prayer? What time-wasters control you, hinder you, from full obedience?

I found myself convicted, asking myself those same questions as I read Hebrews 12:1-2 (NIV):

...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...

What sin entangles me so I cannot be effective? Does the lure of kitchen goodies waste my time and harm my body, the temple of the Holy Spirit? It really hurts when I name succumbing to that temptation as the sin that it is, the sin of gluttony.

Or what about the computer game that calls to me every time I sit down to do those things for which a computer is necessary? Even responsibilities can hinder me from spending time loving my God. I need to ask myself if there are some responsibilities I can do without.

Admittedly, sometimes my sin is not doing what I should, like going to bed when I should. When I stay up late, for whatever reason, I don't want rise early enough to exercise both physically and spiritually. 

We so often use the excuse of our busyness, but how much time do we spend watching television or chatting on the telephone or playing computer games or ... ? Why is entertainment so much more attractive than sitting at Jesus' feet? 

I recently spent some time praying with a dear friend, a woman who shares some of the same prayer concerns I have. When we finished, I realized that I didn't even want to eat wrong, to raid the sweets in the pantry or play Ancient Jewels on the computer. I realized how much that close communion with God affects every aspect of my life. 

Over and over again we find examples of Jesus slipping away to spend time with His Father. We've heard it said many times: if it was so important to the God-Man, how much more important is it for us? He lived every minute of His life in submission to God. Oh, to be more like Him!

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