Run with Perseverance!

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a 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 that lies before us.” (Hebrews 12;1)

It’s a powerful image – a stadium filled with spectators, runners on the track, and the echo of encouragement ringing through the air. It’s not a casual jog. It’s a marathon. And it’s not just any race – it’s our race, and it’s a tough race. There are multiple obstacles and entanglements, but there is also the crowd – the great cloud of witnesses—cheering us on.

Who are these witnesses? The letter to the Hebrews identifies a number of them in the previous chapter. They are the faithful souls from every generation who have gone before us – Abraham, Sarah, Moses, Rahab, the Saints and martyrs. Your grandparents who prayed for you are there, the friends who held your hand through grief, and your teachers and mentors who never gave up on you. And they are not passive observers, tucked away in the bleachers. These witnesses are engaged and involved. They lean forward in their seats and they shout encouragement – “We’ve been there. We’ve run this race. You can do it! You are going to make it!”

Following Christ can be a lonely experience, even if you’re part of a healthy church. I remember not many years ago, people making fun of me over morning tea after our Sunday service due to my ‘obsession’ with Syria and Palestine. A part of me wished I could just laugh along and not be affected by what others thought, but how could I betray the cloud – the great cloud of Syrian and Palestinian martyrs who never seem too far away from me?

Having said that, my pilgrimage with Christ thus far has felt more like a boxing match than a running race. When you’re locked in combat, centre-ring, there are lots of people shouting at you, but they aren’t all shouting encouragement. Some people are cheering you on, but there are always others cheering for your opponent, and there always seem to be plenty of people just screaming for blood! As a combatant, one of the key skills you develop is the ability to screen out most of those voices, primarily so that you can tune into the wisdom coming from your corner. Even so, I have had those moments when I can hear the crowd getting behind me, and their cries of encouragement are like a charge of electricity running through the body, and I sense that I’m a part of something bigger than myself.

Hebrews suggests to us that the veil between us and those who have gone before us may be thinner than we realise. That’s a powerful thought, though it’s not intuitively obvious. As much as I miss my dad, I feel like I haven’t heard a word from him since he died 24 years ago. Even so, if I take seriously this wisdom from the Letter to the Hebrews, one of those voices urging me on must be his!

Hebrews says we are part of a lineage, a communion of saints. Their lives are not distant history. They surround us, not to judge, but to encourage us to keep going!

Of course, this verse isn’t just about encouragement. It’s also a call to action – “Let us throw off everything that hinders.” That’s not a gentle suggestion but a call to radical honesty. What are the weights we carry? And then there’s “the sin that so easily entangles”. The Greek word here suggests something that wraps around us, like vines around a runner’s legs. It’s not just about moral failure. It’s about anything that pulls us away from the path marked out for us. It’s subtle. It’s sneaky. And it’s persistent. But the call is clear: ‘disentangle’. Let it go. Run free.

And how do we run? “With perseverance.” Not with speed. Not with perfection. But with endurance. The life of faith is not a sprint. It’s a long, winding, regularly uphill journey. It can be exhausting. There are times when we want to quit. Perseverance is about showing up. One foot in front of the other. Breath by breath. Prayer by prayer, and …

“Looking unto Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)

The race is marked out. The great cloud of witnesses is cheering us forward. The Spirit is within. Let’s go!

Our Sunday Eucharist

We had another wonderful Sunday Eucharist last weekend, and a big thank you to Pastor Eric Fistler and Costandi Bastoli who joined me on the panel. Much of our discussion focused on Palestine, but no one familiar with Constandi’s role in Palestinian Christians in Australia or with Eric’s history with the Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel would have been too shocked.

Interestingly, this week’s video shorts, many of which were also focused on Palestine, did much better than usual, getting thousands of views each. It’s a sign that world opinion is shifting. Now we just have to wait for the politicians to catch up.

Two of this week’s shorts are below. See the rest on our Sunday Eucharist Instagram page, or watch the entire broadcast on our YouTube channel.

This Sunday I had the two Andrews lined up to join me – Logan and Madry – but, sadly, Dr Madry has had to pull the plug due to family commitments. Happily, Diane Bates has volunteered to take his place (after I pleaded with her). 😉

I’ll be out in the bush this weekend, accompanied by both Joy and Craig, so you should get three of us leading the liturgy on Sunday. Andrew Logan will be joining us from Canada. It should be quite an event!

We broadcast, as usual, from noon (Sydney time) via TheSundayEucharist.com, Facebook , YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Faithia.

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What’s On?

Sunday, August 17 – Our Eucharist from noon @thesundayeucharist.com, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram or Faithia
Tuesday, August 19 – Boxing at the Mundine Gym in Redfern from 7 pm
Weds, August 20 – Bible study at 12.30 pm @www.sundayeucharist.com/bible
Thursday, August 21 – Boxing at the Mundine Gym in Redfern from 7 pm
Saturday, August 2nd – Boxing at Legends Gym in Kensington from 3 pm

As mentioned last week, my dear friend, Dr Hassoun, the former Grand Mufti of Syria, was arrested at Damascus airport in May of this year and has subsequently been tortured. He now awaits what we fear will be a show trial.

The pic above is clipped from a photo of the two of us in 2013. I’ll add the original at the end of this post, along with a more recent picture, overlaid with my prayer. I have been encouraged this week to connect with other supporters of Dr Hassoun around the globe, and I found that one of the clips from our Sunday Eucharist, where I mentioned him, has been dubbed in Arabic and reposted on an Instagram page focused on the great man. You can see the site here and my post here.

Please pray for Dr Hassoun, and consider sharing and posting copies of the graphic above and the prayer beneath. Our dear brother, the former Mufti, represents all that is best in the nation of Syria. May our God protect him and all those across the Levant who are being subjected to torture, starvation, and all forms of violence.

Your brother in the Good Fight,