The Journey of Faith Part 8 - Finishing Strong

Joshua Boyd

Today we finish our series The Journey of Faith with our eighth part.  

This weekend is Memorial Weekend which honors those who died serving our country.  We used the word served because a soldier doesn’t do what he wants to do, he does what he is told to do.  In the military, there are consequences for doing your own thing – not just for the one who does the action but for those around who might suffer because one person didn’t listen or went into self-preservation mode.  

The heroes are the ones we see carrying another when they are down or wounded.  Pushing through the fear and danger to protect and save others.  Looking out for the good of the many rather than trying to save self.   

One of the many ways we tend to get behind or feel like we are the wounded one in life is by the cares of this life. In Mark 4:18-19 Jesus said that there is something that can prevent the Word of God from producing fruit in your life:  

The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, 19 but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.

The Word of God is powerful and can overcome evil.  We, however, control the door of our heart – what we let in.  When worries and cares enter the door, they crowd out the Word from coming in.  This is when the journey of faith gets bogged down.  How many have taken road trips and the GPS has given you the estimated time of arrival but then you run into construction or an accident—backing up traffic for miles, slowing you down, delaying your arrival.  This is what worrying does for our faith journey.  It slows us down, preventing progress.  

There is a solution that takes discipline to see it through.  

1.     Give the Lord your cares and worries

2.     Help others with their burdens

In past messages on this journey, we’ve talked about obedience and humility, two elements required to get us to our journey’s destination. Humility, as we heard on our Wednesday night Bible Study, is seeing yourself as God sees you – an honest evaluation of yourself. This includes the honest assessment of the cares you are carrying.  

Jesus was humble and honest and yet called Himself what he was: the Son of God.  He’s given us the command to be like him.