RACING TO WIN: ENDURANCE

We continue the sermon series Racing to Win at St. Johns.  Endurance is a critical element in training to win.  Every athlete trains in order to increase their endurance.  We forget that we also need this in our spiritual race.  How do we train for spiritual endurance?  In the sermon Endurance we turn to Hebrews 11:22-29.  There are two strong realities that faith shares with us.  First, all of our lives are temporary, but God’s presence is eternal and enduring.  Secondly, as our trust grows in God’s presence and care, we become stronger.  It builds in us a greater sense that we will not be defeated or overcome by the circumstances we encounter.  The writer of Hebrews uses the example of Moses to help us understand the strength and hope that God wants to share with our lives.  As you read Hebrews 11:22-29, we pray that you will find the strength of believing that the Almighty God is lifting you into his presence!  Hebrews 11:22-29 By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones. 23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. 24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel. 29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.  (NIV)