t’s another rainy, gloomy day here in Chattanooga. As I dragged myself out of bed and on to the coffee pot, I declared it called for a “happy” cup. Sitting down at my desk, I pulled up my retreat preparation notes from yesterday’s digging around in the book of Hebrews. I sipped coffee from my happy cup, read my notes, reread chapters 1-12 and #wow Y'all.

Do you know why the book Hebrews was written? Because those folks needed to be strengthened and encouraged in their faith (13:22). Why? Because they were facing a lot of troubles (10:32) and in their troubles, they were in danger of getting bogged down by those troubles. I don’t know about you, but when I get bogged down in my troubles all I can think of is getting unbogged. Is that a word? Well, never mind…surely you get my point. All I can see is my trouble. All I can think about is my trouble. I grow weary, tired and begin to just give up, give in….cave. I get messed up in my mind and it can get so bad that I go spiritually stupid. It’s like I forget everything I know, believe, profess.

Guess what? That’s kind of what was happening to the people being written to in the book of Hebrews. As I read Chapters 1-12, I observed that their great troubles and suffering had caused them to or put them in danger of…

• Not paying close attention to the things they had been taught and heard concerning their faith.

• Drifting away from what they had heard and knew to be the truth. It was slipping their minds.

• Neglecting so great a salvation. They just weren’t thinking about their salvation or paying attention to it and as such just being careless with such a great thing wrought for them.

• Losing their grip on truth and that was causing them to slacken their faith grip, lose their confidence. As such, they were in danger of hardening their hearts; falling away in their faith or giving up; stop listening/learning, growing, practicing; stop praying and meeting together with other believers.

Uh, I resemble some of those remarks.

In 10:36, the author of Hebrews says they are in need of endurance. Yeah, you think? And don’t we all? In this world, there is no shortage of trouble. If you are like me, then troubles wear you down physically, emotionally and spiritually. Troubles produce lots of emotions and this is when I start getting all bogged down, messed up in my thinking and go spiritually stupid. I needed the encouragements from Hebrews this morning. I needed what God says in Hebrews 4:12 to happen…I needed my heart pierced and my thoughts and intents judged! I was getting bogged down, getting off in my thinking and starting to drift. And guess what? I didn’t even realize it until I got into these words of God this morning. I left with not only a better understanding of what was going on in my mind and heart and why but with a fix. Yeah, a fix. Here it is…

• Take my eyes off the cares, worries, wants, and troubles of this world and fix my eyes on Jesus.

• Consider Jesus and all He has done for me and what He endured for me. Think about Him rather than think about my cares, worries, wants, and troubles.

• Rather than stop talking to Him, or trusting and believing Him…Draw near to Him. Hold fast to my faith in Him and what I know to be true about Him.

• Yes, I need endurance so I can run my race of faith. Run with endurance, toward Him.

• Run free…unencumbered and unentangled. Not taking my eyes off of Him, not stopping, not drifting, not dropping out or falling away.

• Run like the wind toward JESUS.

Gloomy day, happy cup, encouraged and strengthened heart. Be blessed.