“Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear.” (Matthew 24:35 NLT)

One reason believers may start to feel shaky in their relationship with God is that they haven’t built a solid foundation for their lives. So, when circumstances threaten their well-being, they don’t always know where to turn. And that leaves them feeling distant from the Lord.

Where will you turn in a time of crisis? When tragedy hits? When disaster strikes? Will it be your favorite website? The morning newspaper? The evening news? You’ll need something to give you strength and direction in your time of despair. Here’s a tip: You won’t find a better resource than the Word of God.

As one pastor said, “One gem from that ocean is worth all the pebbles of earthly streams.” Just a single gem from the ocean of God’s Word can make all the difference when tragedy or hardship strikes. How many people in their affliction have found comfort from Scripture?

Trusting in what God has said in His Word can sustain us and give us direction, hope, and comfort when we need them most. Inspirational platitudes or clever sayings won’t help—at least, not for very long—but the Word of God always will. It’s been said that those who reject the Bible have nothing to live by. Neither do they have anything to die by.

Ideas and philosophies go in and out of style with the passing of years, but the Word of God never goes out of style. It never goes out of date, unlike this morning’s news. The Word of God will always be relevant.

That’s why C. S. Lewis said, “All that is not eternal is eternally out of date.” And it’s why Jesus Himself said, “Heaven and earth will disappear, but my words will never disappear” (Matthew 24:35 NLT).

Jesus emphasized the importance of having a solid foundation grounded in God’s truth in His parable of the wise and foolish builders in Matthew 7:24–27. The wise man built his house on the rock. When the rains came, when the storms of life threatened his well-being, it did not fall. The structure may have been shaken to its core, but it withstood everything that was thrown at it. Because it had a strong foundation.

The foolish man, on the other hand, built his house on sand. He didn’t prioritize a strong foundation. When the rains came, his house collapsed with a great crash.

I urge you to get a good foundation in God’s Word because it’s only a matter of time until the storms of life rain down on you and hardship strikes. It happens in every life, without exception. But if you have a good foundation in the Word of God, then you’ll be ready for difficulty when it comes. Don’t wait until then to try to catch up.

Get that foundation now.

Reflection question: What are some of the biblical truths, promises, priorities, and commands that make up a solid foundation for life? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1 NLT)

Feeling distant from God is not a unique experience. At some point in their lives, all believers—including the heroes of the faith in the Bible—experience it. Jesus Himself cried, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Matthew 27:46 NLT).

In this week’s devotions, we’re going to look at ways to close the distance between us and God. We’re going to start by looking at the personal baggage that keeps us from reaching our God-given potential and experiencing the kind of relationship with God that He desires.

I’m the kind of person who likes to drag a lot of stuff with me when I travel. It isn’t that I’m a rookie traveler. Not at all! I’ve traveled all over the world for many years. Yet I still overpack. You’d think that I would have learned my lesson by now. But no, I still want to drag along almost everything I own—even though I know that excess baggage makes traveling more hassled, complicated, and expensive.

In the same way, when we’re running the race of life, we need to travel light. Sometimes we tend to drag along a lot of excess weight. The author of Hebrews wrote, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us” (Hebrews 12:1 NLT).

Sin is sin, and it will always trip us up and cause us to fall. But there might also be other weights in our lives—weights that aren’t necessarily sins, but nevertheless trouble us, slow us down, and impede our spiritual progress. These weights might include such things as certain habits, misplaced priorities, or seemingly harmless distractions. Often, they weigh us down without our realizing it.

That’s why I periodically take stock of my life as a Christian and look at the things I’m doing with my time. I ask myself questions such as, “Is it a wing or a weight? Is it speeding me on my way spiritually, or is it slowing me down? Is it increasing my spiritual appetite, or is it dulling it?”

Often, we allow ourselves to become busy doing a lot of things that aren’t really all that important. They just seem important at the time. We must ask ourselves if we need to do those things. Are they slowing us down? Are they keeping us from running the race God has given us?

Lay aside the weight and the sin that hinder your progress, and see how the Christian life changes for you.

Reflection question: What are some things that might slow you down, spiritually speaking? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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The audio production of the podcast "Greg Laurie: Daily Devotions" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."

All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie.

Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast

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Support the show: https://harvest.org/support

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” (Hebrews 12:1–2 NLT)

Over the past two weeks, we’ve looked at several Old Testament characters. In Hebrews 12:1–2, the significance of their lives, their experiences, their struggles, their victories, and their testimonies is brought home to us. One chapter earlier, the author of Hebrews recapped many of their stories in what’s often called the “Faith Hall of Fame.”

The placement of the exhortation in Hebrews 12:1–2 seems to suggest that these “hall of famers,” these heroes of the faith—Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, David, Daniel, and others—take a rooting interest in our spiritual race. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne” (NLT).

These people of faith who went before us gave us models to follow so that we might live and exercise our faith as they did. Reading about the lives of these men and women who walked with God and trusted Christ and stood strong in the face of trials and persecutions can add steel to our souls.

But they didn’t just give us templates to follow. They are also observing us and taking note of our progress in the faith. This “crowd of witnesses” is watching us and cheering us on, if you will.

That’s just one interpretation of the passage, of course. We don’t know for certain that there are heavenly grandstands where people monitor the progress of loved ones living out their lives on earth. But it wouldn’t surprise me if that were true. I do, however, know this much: We are in the race of our lives on earth, and none of us knows how long it will last. So, we must make the most of it. We must live our lives to please not the bystanders but the Lord Himself. We must make decisions and interact with others in ways that honor and pique curiosity about Him. We must leave a legacy that inspires other believers—the ones we will cheer on when we join the crowd of witnesses.

Reflection question: How does knowing that you have a crowd of witnesses impact your Christian race? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship!

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The audio production of the podcast "Greg Laurie: Daily Devotions" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."

All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie.

Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast

Become a Harvest Partner

Support the show: https://harvest.org/support

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.