Unstoppable by Christine CaineSample

I was 33 when I learned that I was adopted. I had been left at a hospital unnamed and unwanted. Growing up, I suffered abuse at the hands of multiple men for twelve years. These things from my past could have kept me from ever running my race. To be honest, I don’t think anyone would have blamed me if I didn’t want to run my race at all, but God is a healer, and he invites us to run, unhindered in pursuit of his goodness. When I came to know him and serve him, I knew that what he was calling me into would be far greater than the pain I had experienced. Somehow, I knew I would only get to see his calling on my life come to fruition if I got moving. 

But moving meant dealing with the entanglements that were holding me back--the issues in my heart that were holding me back--the issues that often hold any of us back...issues like:

• Unforgiveness 
• Shame 
• Rejection
• Lust
• Greed
• Envy 
• Insecurity 
• Fear 
• Doubt 
• Apathy 

Ask God what entanglements he wants you to be free from so you can run your race well, to live free from past mistakes, hurts and misconceptions. Ask God what you must leave behind so you can serve him with your full life. After all, we cannot go where we are going without leaving where we have been.

When I think of this, I can’t help but remember the story of Joseph, a young man in the Old Testament who was sold into slavery by his brothers. Though they betrayed him, Joseph went on to be used by God to save a nation and said of his brothers, “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives” (Genesis 50:20). 

Despite what life throws at you and all the pain that comes with those moments, God promises that the plans he has for you are good. So throw off those entanglements. Throw off anything from your past that’s weighing you down and step into his promises that are beckoning you into your future.

What is God asking to heal in your life so you can run unhindered? 

Adapted from Unstoppable: Step into Your Purpose, Run Your Race, Embrace the Future by Christine Caine. Copyright © 2014 by Christine Caine. Reprinted with permission of Zondervan Publishing. All rights reserved.