Since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses ... 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. Hebrews 12:1-2

After he had run all 26 miles of the New York City Marathon, one runner had this to say of the cheering crowds along the way: "My goal was to make the 16-mile mark, but the inspiration the people gave made me think twice about not finishing. The winner had passed by an hour before, but the crowd stayed on cheering us all. 'You can do it,' they yelled. How could I give up in front of this throng? I was beginning to feel sore in my thighs and hips. I had no energy left, but I plodded on to that faraway finish line."

All of us need encouragement in the daily race of our Christian life. That's why God puts us with other people. We can cheer one another on. Our congregations are meant to be support groups. In them we do bear one another's burdens.

Through God's Word and sacraments we can encourage those who tire of doing good, lift those who stumble and fall, and comfort those who ache and hurt from the blows of life. We tolerate stress and pressures better if at least one other person knows about it and cares.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus Christ, we thank you for taking the burden of our sin on Yourself and for letting us know You care also about our pains and problems of daily living. Give us strength and courage. Use us today to demonstrate Your love to members of our church family. Amen.

(Devotions from "The Abundant Life" copyright 1998, CPH. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be printed, reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of Concordia Publishing House. Permission is granted for one-time e-mailing of this link to a friend. For information on other devotional material, please contact CPH at 800-325-3040 or visit CPH at www.cph.org.)

Today's Bible Readings: Ecclesiastes 1-3    Acts 9:1-22

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