The Christian life is hard. Not because God is cruel or distant, but because He is a loving Father who is conforming His children to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29). That process — sanctification — is often agonizing. But the agony is not without aim, and the pain is not without purpose. We run the race with endurance by fixing our eyes on the One who ran before us...

Every Christian who desires to grow in holiness must wrestle with this reality: sanctification begins not by addition, but by subtraction. Before you can grow, you must lay aside. Before you can run with endurance, you must lighten your load. Hebrews 12:1 gives us a clear command: “Let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us…” This is the discipline of spiritual subtraction—a God-give

The Christian life is not a stroll. It is not a sprint fueled by fleeting emotion or circumstantial zeal. It is a marathon. A long, grueling, disciplined race that demands endurance, focus, and spiritual fortitude.