run with perseverance

"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, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." - Hebrews 12:1-2 (NIV)

the christian life is a journey of faith revealed in different chapters, each leading on to the next. on one level, we are called to build upon the work of our predecessors, just as the apostles carried on the work of Christ and timothy continued the work of paul. on another, we are also called to discern God's will for our lives - to continue to work out [our] salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in [us] to will and to act according to his good purpose (Philippians 2:12-13).

the point is not that the two (building upon the work of our predecessors based on things which happen around us and discerning God's will for our lives based on things which happen to us) are contradictory (they're not), but rather that they illuminate each other. we come to realise the significance of things which happen around us through the things which happen to us and vice versa.

the race marked out for us is simultaneously God's plan for humanity and God's plan for our lives. it is through the race marked out for us that our faith is authored and perfected by the author and perfecter of our faith. to this end, your present commitments pave the way for your future commitments, being held together by the real bond.

now that i've more or less settled into my new environment at york, i'm looking forward to going home for christmas and coming back in jan. in terms of my upcoming commitments, next year is going to be quite challenging but also very exciting. i'm going to be a small group leader in james cu as well as a member of the international team (which organises outreach events for international students) on the main cu. it'll be a unique blend of having fellowship with other believers vs reaching out to non-believers, leading on my own vs working as a team and interacting with local students vs meeting other international students.

if a human author would plot the different chapters of a novel down to the last detail, how much more would the author and perfecter of our faith be with us and watch over us in the different chapters of our lives!

the end of one chapter, the beginning of another. where do we go from here?