Original: December 6, 2007
1 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. Hebrews 12:1
When it comes to a man’s passions in life the greatest tragedy is for that man to do them without a compadre-a buddy. I believe in Solomon’s words that, “Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work” (Ecclesiastes 4:9). I love to be in the out doors alone but a buddy is usually close by. In California that friend was usually my friend Darby.
I am a planner. I get energized in doing the research, analyzing all potential contingencies and developing the best plan possible based on empirical date and knowledge. Darby is much different. Darby gets energized out of problem solving. He loves to fix things that are broken where I try to fix them before they get broken. I look at problems from the outside in. Darby looks at them from the inside out.
We are the perfect team.
You can see how this can be a beautiful hunting partnership. I usually take on the responsibility of doing the majority of our research leading up to the trip and Darby looks at it from another angle once we are there in order to confirm my research. Because of how Darby solves problems in the field I usually let him take the lead when in the field and I am usually in front before we get there.
Planning from the outside verses planning from the inside is most obviously seen from our backpacks. My pack is methodically organized and every item strategically placed in it before I ever step out of the truck. Darby on the other hand, throws it all together the last minute and never stops adjusting his pack the entire trip. Many times I have stared in disbelief as Darby searched for misplaced items. On one occasion he even lashed his fanny pack to his large pack because he liked it better even though he eventually have to fashion MacGyver-like suspenders onto it pack because he didn’t like the way it rode on his hips!
After I took my New Mexico buck he had so much gear lashed to his pack that it extended sideways four feet in some places, hindering him from walking through some areas of thick brush or close timber. I would guess he carried at least 140 pounds to my 100 because of his lack of planning! Walking behind him was quite hilarious!
When I read Hebrews 12:1 I thought of Darby’s backpack. Because of his unwillingness to plan ahead and inability to “throw off” the many unneeded things that “hindered” him he was overloaded; thus creating more work for himself. Then I thought of all the extra baggage many of us choose to carry in our faith backpacks- un-forgiveness, family baggage, choices from our past, secret life of sexual sin, and other sins ignored or neglected from our present.
How a man lives out his faith is his choice. His faith race will be hindered enough by basic problems of life, but I continue to see many followers of Jesus barely keeping up because their faith is so “entangled” with extra burdens and baggage (Galatians 6:12).
What’s in your pack? What excess are you carrying? Who are you holding onto that does not need to be there? What sins are you hiding today?
