“And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:1b-2 NIV)
When I was a little boy my Mom, Dad, brothers and I all lived in my Nana’s old, ramshackle house. The only way you could reach it was across a battered, wooden, swinging bridge that spanned the river next to it. On the other side of it too was a pair of railroad tracks only 10 feet from the house. I can still remember how the house would shake when the trains hauling coal would go by. Still, it was home and I always felt safe and loved there.
The tracks too were fun to stroll down when there were no trains around. One day my older brother even tried to show me how to walk on a single rail by putting one foot in front of the other. Each time I tried, however, I would stumble and fall. Even holding my arms straight out to my sides for balance didn’t help. I just couldn’t do it like my brother did and I soon gave up.
One day when I was alone I decided to try again. I walked a long way down the tracks and then stepped up on the single rail again. I watched my feet but that only made me stumble more. It was so frustrating. I could walk on an old, wooden bridge that swayed all over the place but not on a solid piece of steel. Finally, I set my eyes upon Nana’s house and gave it one last try. This time, though, I didn’t stumble. I walked on and on with my eyes on home. When I finally reached my front door I smiled with satisfaction and laughed with joy.
Looking back at that memory today I think I finally succeeded because my eyes weren’t on each step I took but rather on my home. I think that is how God wants us to live our lives here too. By keeping our eyes on our true home in Heaven we stumble less and walk with a lighter step. We forgive ourselves when we fall, we pick others up when they do, and we let God guide us all along the way. We travel with so much love, laughter, and joy that with each step we take towards Heaven we also bring a little more Heaven here to Earth.
Joseph J. Mazzella
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