The Strength to Endure | Run Free, Part 4
Key Truth | Faithfulness is not carrying everything; it is having the discernment to know what God has called you to carry and the endurance to carry it well.
Key Scripture | “Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame… For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.” — Hebrews 12:2–3 (NKJV)
There is a difference between carrying weight and carrying a cross.
Hebrews 12 tells us to lay aside every weight, but just a few verses later it points us to Jesus, who endured the cross. Maturity is not simply learning how to put things down. It is learning the difference between what God is asking us to release and what He is asking us to walk through.
Sometimes we carry things God never asked us to carry and call it faithfulness. At other times, we try to escape something difficult that God is actually using to form us. Wisdom is knowing the difference.
Jesus did not endure the cross because suffering itself was good. He endured because there was something on the other side of His suffering: “the joy that was set before Him.” Purpose gave perspective to what He was walking through.
I have been thinking about that in this season of my own life. As God has been speaking to me about laying things down, I have realized that the goal isn’t to remove everything difficult from my life. Some responsibilities need to be released, while other assignments will require perseverance.
Sometimes the question isn’t, “Is this difficult?” The better question is, “Is this mine to carry?”
That question has challenged me because ability and assignment are not the same thing. I can have the ability to solve a problem, meet an expectation, or carry a responsibility without God asking me to do it in this season. As the race gets longer, learning to steward our strength becomes increasingly important.
Being capable of carrying something doesn’t necessarily mean we are called to carry it.
That distinction matters for a church celebrating 40 years too.
Opendoor exists today because people remained faithful. There were seasons when the vision was exciting and seasons when it was costly. People prayed when answers didn’t come quickly, gave when resources were limited, served when no one noticed, stayed faithful through change, and continued believing when the promise was larger than what they could see.
We honor their faithfulness, but every generation has its own stretch of the race. The challenge at a milestone like 40 years is discerning what belongs to the calling of this house and what belonged to a particular season.
Our hunger for the presence of God is not weight. Our commitment to worship is not weight. Loving people, forming disciples, reaching our community, investing in the next generation, and going wherever God sends us are part of the calling entrusted to this house.
Methods can change while calling remains.
That kind of discernment also helps protect us from the weariness Hebrews warns about when it says not to become “weary and discouraged in your souls.” That kind of weariness goes deeper than physical exhaustion. Sometimes it comes from carrying too much for too long. At other times, it comes from walking through a difficult season that cannot yet be changed.
This is why discernment matters so much. I don’t want an easier race simply for the sake of ease. I want the race God has set before me. I want to know what belongs in my hands and have the courage to release what doesn’t.
After 40 years, perhaps that is part of the invitation before us as a church. We are not trying merely to preserve what has been built, nor are we trying to prove how much more we can build. We are asking God to show us what faithfulness looks like now.
There is still a race before us, and running it well will require both perseverance and freedom from unnecessary weight.
Faithfulness isn’t carrying everything. It is carrying what God has actually called you to carry.
Reflection Questions
Prayer | Father, thank You for the grace that has sustained us through every season and for those who came before us whose faithfulness helped bring us to where we are today.
Give me discernment in this season. Show me what You are asking me to lay down and what You are asking me to carry. Keep me from confusing unnecessary weight with faithfulness, but also keep me from walking away from something simply because it is difficult.
Guard my soul from weariness and discouragement. Teach me to steward the strength You have given me so I can run the race You have set before me at Your pace.
As a church, help us honor 40 years of faithfulness by being faithful in our generation. Give us wisdom to know what should change and conviction about what must remain. May we carry forward what You have placed within the DNA of this house while releasing anything that would hinder the race ahead. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Additional Scripture
Hebrews 12:1–3 — Weight, endurance and the example of Jesus
Matthew 11:28–30 — The yoke of Jesus and rest for our souls
Galatians 6:2–5 — Understanding the burdens we carry
2 Corinthians 4:16–18 — Not losing heart in difficult seasons
Isaiah 40:28–31 — Renewed strength for those who wait on the Lord
Galatians 6:9 — Not growing weary while doing good
1 Corinthians 9:24–27 — Running with purpose and discipline
Key Scripture | “Who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame… For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.” — Hebrews 12:2–3 (NKJV)
There is a difference between carrying weight and carrying a cross.
Hebrews 12 tells us to lay aside every weight, but just a few verses later it points us to Jesus, who endured the cross. Maturity is not simply learning how to put things down. It is learning the difference between what God is asking us to release and what He is asking us to walk through.
Sometimes we carry things God never asked us to carry and call it faithfulness. At other times, we try to escape something difficult that God is actually using to form us. Wisdom is knowing the difference.
Jesus did not endure the cross because suffering itself was good. He endured because there was something on the other side of His suffering: “the joy that was set before Him.” Purpose gave perspective to what He was walking through.
I have been thinking about that in this season of my own life. As God has been speaking to me about laying things down, I have realized that the goal isn’t to remove everything difficult from my life. Some responsibilities need to be released, while other assignments will require perseverance.
Sometimes the question isn’t, “Is this difficult?” The better question is, “Is this mine to carry?”
That question has challenged me because ability and assignment are not the same thing. I can have the ability to solve a problem, meet an expectation, or carry a responsibility without God asking me to do it in this season. As the race gets longer, learning to steward our strength becomes increasingly important.
Being capable of carrying something doesn’t necessarily mean we are called to carry it.
That distinction matters for a church celebrating 40 years too.
Opendoor exists today because people remained faithful. There were seasons when the vision was exciting and seasons when it was costly. People prayed when answers didn’t come quickly, gave when resources were limited, served when no one noticed, stayed faithful through change, and continued believing when the promise was larger than what they could see.
We honor their faithfulness, but every generation has its own stretch of the race. The challenge at a milestone like 40 years is discerning what belongs to the calling of this house and what belonged to a particular season.
Our hunger for the presence of God is not weight. Our commitment to worship is not weight. Loving people, forming disciples, reaching our community, investing in the next generation, and going wherever God sends us are part of the calling entrusted to this house.
Methods can change while calling remains.
That kind of discernment also helps protect us from the weariness Hebrews warns about when it says not to become “weary and discouraged in your souls.” That kind of weariness goes deeper than physical exhaustion. Sometimes it comes from carrying too much for too long. At other times, it comes from walking through a difficult season that cannot yet be changed.
This is why discernment matters so much. I don’t want an easier race simply for the sake of ease. I want the race God has set before me. I want to know what belongs in my hands and have the courage to release what doesn’t.
After 40 years, perhaps that is part of the invitation before us as a church. We are not trying merely to preserve what has been built, nor are we trying to prove how much more we can build. We are asking God to show us what faithfulness looks like now.
There is still a race before us, and running it well will require both perseverance and freedom from unnecessary weight.
Faithfulness isn’t carrying everything. It is carrying what God has actually called you to carry.
Reflection Questions
- Is there something difficult in your life that you need to discern more clearly. Is God asking you to release it, or endure it faithfully?
- Are you carrying something simply because you are capable of carrying it, or because God has actually assigned it to you in this season?
Prayer | Father, thank You for the grace that has sustained us through every season and for those who came before us whose faithfulness helped bring us to where we are today.
Give me discernment in this season. Show me what You are asking me to lay down and what You are asking me to carry. Keep me from confusing unnecessary weight with faithfulness, but also keep me from walking away from something simply because it is difficult.
Guard my soul from weariness and discouragement. Teach me to steward the strength You have given me so I can run the race You have set before me at Your pace.
As a church, help us honor 40 years of faithfulness by being faithful in our generation. Give us wisdom to know what should change and conviction about what must remain. May we carry forward what You have placed within the DNA of this house while releasing anything that would hinder the race ahead. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Additional Scripture
Hebrews 12:1–3 — Weight, endurance and the example of Jesus
Matthew 11:28–30 — The yoke of Jesus and rest for our souls
Galatians 6:2–5 — Understanding the burdens we carry
2 Corinthians 4:16–18 — Not losing heart in difficult seasons
Isaiah 40:28–31 — Renewed strength for those who wait on the Lord
Galatians 6:9 — Not growing weary while doing good
1 Corinthians 9:24–27 — Running with purpose and discipline
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