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b'Hebrews 12 encourages us to run the race that God has set before us, which is possible when we keep \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d (verse 2). Not only did Jesus start the race and finish the race, but He ran it faithfully\\u2014for us. He didn\\u2019t take His eyes off the end result, the prize. He was able to face anything that came His way, even enduring an excruciating death. Why? Because it was all worth it to Him.\\nThe prize was greater than the race.\\nThe prize was greater than the pain.\\nThe prize was greater than the shame. \\nThe prize was greater than the rejection. \\nThe prize was greater than the cross.\\nHe saw us\\u2014His people, His creation\\u2014and thought, \\u201cThey\\u2019re worth it.\\u201d Look at the second part of verse 2: \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d Isn\\u2019t that beautiful? Jesus was looking forward to the joy of reuniting us to Himself, of healing His creation that has been broken by sin.\\nWhat about us? If we\\u2019ve put our trust in Jesus, we get to look forward to living with God in His new world, where we will be free from sin and death. That is our joy that is set before us. In this life, we have hurt, we have pain, we have sorrow, we have defeat, we have discouragement, we have______. Fill in the blank. But that\\u2019s not the end of our story\\u2014and praise God for that! We have pain for a season, but thank you, Jesus, that joy comes in the morning (Psalm 30:5). Because we belong to Jesus, we can know that He is right alongside us in the pain. And the Holy Spirit empowers us to endure the hurt, the sadness, the brokenness\\u2026knowing that the prize will be worth it all. We can look forward to the end of our race, being with Jesus and hearing Him say, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Well done, my good and faithful servant\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d (Matthew 25:23). He loves us, and He won\\u2019t leave us. \\u2022 Mary Garner\\n\\u2022 Jesus ran the race for YOU. How can this give you hope? \\nAnd let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God\\u2019s throne. Hebrews 12:1b-2 (NLT)\\n\\xa0\\nRead Verses:\\nMatt.5.43-Matt.5.48|Luke.10.25-Luke.10.37'