“…let us lay aside every weight…” Hebrews 12:1
Do you know that on that on January 8, 2003, US AIRWAYS Flight 5481 bound from Charlotte, North Carolina to Greenville, South Carolina crashed unfortunately resulting in 21 casualties due to overloading? It burst into flames 37 seconds after lift off. One of the reasons was, it was 580 pounds over the maximum allowable weight. Three dangers occurred:
- This vessel had the capacity of flying at about 3,000 to 18,000 feet above sea level (mind you, commercial airlines do 30,000 to 40,000) yet it didn’t release its potential
- Didn’t reach its desired destination
- Unfortunately, it ended in a fatal crash with lives onboard
As I pondered over these truths, it is sad to say this aircraft really mirrors our lives. We are loaded and laden with gifts- so much potential yet it is not manifesting itself, we are not making any headway in our lives nor getting to God’s desired destiny. For some, it has been more fatal because it wasn’t just your life that came tumbling and crashing but others who were with you. Sometimes, your potential is earthed because of weights. Let us take a look at the subject of weight
According to Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, weight is defined as the amount that a thing or a person weighs.
In this scripture passage, the author is admonishing us to run the race of faith with endurance but we can not do it until we deal with the weight and the ensnaring sin.
Today we focus on the first encumbrance to us running effectively which is weight. Weights unchecked will not only exhaust you and eat up your endurance. It kills also! In order to deal with weight, we need to identify these types of weights that makes us lag in the race of faith or in this journey called life
Types of weight
- Body- this is the commonest type known. This is is when your weight and height are used to calculate a number called the “body mass index” (BMI). Overweight is relative due to your weight and height but it is generally said, a BMI of 25 to 29.9 is considered overweight. Any number higher than that is considered obese. Overweight among its many negative implications makes you sluggish; you experience shortness of breath and are prone to a lot of cardiac related diseases… As I write, Paul Gascoigne comes to mind, the English soccer player, so skilled and could have maximized his talent to the zenith yet he battled with weight problems. Don’t feel condemned reading if you are battling with weight issues. It is not my intention to offend but to encourage you that you can do it. Don’t let anybody misjudge or label you because of your weight
- Mental- this is when you have a certain train of thoughts which is against the Word of God. These thoughts have shaped your person and it is called a stronghold. Your thoughts will determine how you act. For instance, you will see a born again Christian talking about he is cursed instead of declaring he is blessed. This train of thought goes against what is written in the Bible and if caution isn’t taken, this thought pattern will build a fortress (stronghold) in your mind. The end result is you will think cursed and act cursed.
- Emotional- Emotions basically deal with the way humans feel. When you take off the e off emotion, you get motion which means movement so we can safely say our feelings move us in a good or bad state
- Relational- This has to do with our company or the friends who hang with and around us. Your social circle has a bearing on your destiny. A wise man once said, “your next five years is determined by two factors- the books you read (information) & the friends you keep (relationships)”. Some teenagers didn’t enter into adulthood but died prematurely because of company. A marriage ended not because of the spouse(s) but their social circle surrounding them. As much as relationships can impact negatively, there is also a greater good & much more positives to good friendships
- Spiritual- A story in the Bible about a rich young ruler who wanted to follow Jesus yet couldn’t pay the price of been a disciple because of his riches. From this story, I inferred there can be a state such as ‘spiritual weight’ where you cannot go all out for God and have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ because of ‘another love’ competing. That could be money, fame, your job, ‘your dream house’… Having these niceties are not bad in itself but can serve as weights if unchecked
We have dealt with the first encumbrance. We will look at the next in the following post. In order to be healed effectively, diagnosis first, then prognosis. That is, you will not appreciate the medicine till you can first locate the sickness or the source of discomfort
Till I come your way again…
Peace & Love
Pencilled Thoughts 