So great a cloud of witnesses

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses... let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

Why do you think it makes a difference if we were surrounded by witnesses-and more than witnesses, a whole cloud of them! When I run I tend to think of songs, verses anything that has to do with running, and so today it was Hebrews 12:1-2.

Monday night I foolishly waited to start my 6 mile run to 8:30... which meant I had to run on the treadmill-my least favorite thing! There was no one in the gym and the horrible treadmill was facing a wall- so there I was for 40+ minutes staring directly at a wall with no one to hold me accountable except for the two people that I texted about how miserable I was.... Needless to say I ended up running two miles and walking for about twenty minutes until the gym closed at 9:30.

So today I woke up early so that I could run outside in my favorite park. It's amazing to me how much difference it makes when I'm running in the presence of other people. As I was running along I thought about the training program that I'm using for my half-marathon. The longest run that I'll ever work up to is 10 miles- kinda strange when I'm supposed to be running 13... But that's where Hebrews 12 comes in. There's something about witnesses, people cheering you on, that affects your ability to persevere. I've heard that there's no need to build up to the full 13 because on race day the energy from all the spectators is enough to carry you through the last 3 miles... enough to make you persevere til the end.

So the spiritual application? My high school youth pastor once preached on this passage. He spoke of how in a building where he went to seminary there was a painting on the ceiling that pictured in intricate detail hundreds of people, angelic-like, looking down from above. And just as it was for him, this mental image has often been associated with this verse for me. Just imagine, the great cloud of witnesses looking down from heaven on you as you're laying in bed at night stressed out from another long day and trying to plan out how you're going to make it through the next 24 hours-which is about as far in advanced as you can plan- think on this and then run, with perseverance. Just imagine yourself in between the taped off course of your 13.1 miles, surrounded by 'witnesses' cheering you on, and persevere!