Strip

Dear Friends,

On the way to the church today I came across a large bird in the middle of the road, feasting on the remains of a dead rabbit. When the bird saw my car coming, it gripped the rabbit firmly in its talons and tried to fly away. However, the rabbit was too heavy, and so the bird wasn’t able to take off. It was obvious that this bird did not want to leave its meal behind, but it also seemed to understand the danger my car presented. So with very little room to spare, the bird reluctantly abandoned its meal, and flew out of the way.

As I passed by, I couldn’t help but think of how often we can do this same thing - how we can put ourselves at risk because we’re reluctant to let go of things that are dangerous for us - things our sinful nature wants to hang on to. Romans 8:13 tells us, “You have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.” The bird this morning nearly lost its life because it would not let go. When we hold on to the things our flesh desires, we separate ourselves from God and the blessings He has for us. And in doing so, we put ourselves in danger as we open ourselves up to the enemy to have a foothold in our lives.

This means that the question we need to daily ask ourselves is:  “Am I holding on to anything today that is jeopardizing my walk with God?” If the answer is “yes”, then we need to follow the instruction in Hebrews 12:1 to, “strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up”.  

So today let’s do this. Let’s commit to letting go of the sins that are putting us in danger. Let’s put down the things that God has called us to let go of. Let’s resolve to not let anything hinder us from fully following God.

Amen?

Daniel