Cupboard

I was supposed to be on some sort of a holiday break over the Christmas/New Year period...but couldn't help myself!
I realised there was some things I just wanted to deal with before facing a brand new year.
Some things that I didn't want hanging over me.
Some things that I was concerned would potentially hinder me.

You see there is this cupboard in my office.
It is a mystical place where all sorts of things are stored. Actually when we didn't know where to store something, we simply put it in that cupboard. And after 4 years of deliveries to this crazy abyss of mess and function, I couldn't put it off any longer! 
I didn't want to start the new year with this cupboard in the form that it was. Totally messy, unusable and tormenting me as I sat beside each and every day.

So even though I was supposed to not work I decided enough was enough and set to the grand and liberating task of resolving my clutter problem.
Now when I walk into my office it feels ever so much better. Not because you can see my work, but because I know that what was hidden is now resolved and finally in right order.

Over time our lives can be a little like this cupboard.
We accumulate all sorts of things from all manner of experiences.
Sometimes good stuff to savour and enjoy the memory of, along with the not so savoury, the baggage that can feel like it weighing us down...even hindering us.

When Paul wrote a letter to the Hebrews, he said this phrase in the middle of an important statement...
"...let us throw off everything that hinders..."
Why?
Because he understood that to follow Christ there are some things that we carry that won't help.
It is like a cloak you have to throw off otherwise it will slow your running.

Is there anything you need to throw off?
Are there things that are hindering you?
Maybe a habit? A bad relationship? A memory? A hurt?...
If you are reading this and thinking of something you know in your heart is slowing you down in Christ, please be brave and take steps to remove it from your life.

I truly want this year to be outstanding for you. I want that for myself as well...
"...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,  fixing our eyes on Jesus."

Something to think about...