The morning after the tenth anniversary of 9/11 and my brain has a permanent imprint of the image of the collapse of the twin towers. My spirit sags under the weight of the whole thing and its tragic repercussions round the world. It’s been a sad decade.
Lying awake in bed last night, thinking of other, more personal, sad imprints on my mind’s eye. Events stretching back through my lifetime. Moments of tension and angst in relationships. Personal failures. Grief still raw after all these years. Disappointment in the fears which inhibit my risk-taking.
And I see them as so much baggage dragging behind me, like the tin cans tied onto newly-weds’ cars. Clanging and jarring, distracting me. Inhibiting my ability to think clearly, to move forward courageously.
The writer to the Hebrews wrote, ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, 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.’
So today, with God’s help, I am going to throw off the negative carbuncles that impede my progress. I don’t want to stumble over old baggage and I don’t want to focus on the sins and sadness. Instead, face forwards, eyes upwards, I am going to run towards the Son, for as long as I draw breath. So help me God.
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