"Circle"

They sing the circle is unbroken,

By and by, Lord, by and by,

It’s the truth, not just a token,

Though we sigh, Lord, yes, we sigh.

‘Cause so many of our number,

Crossed the river, said good-bye,

They passed through dying’s slumber,

Went through heaven’s gates on high.

And, Lord, we know together,

We all soon there will be,

But with stormy or fair weather,

With the eyes of faith we see.

That our years and days and hours,

We surrender to Your hands,

We live by the Spirit’s power,

And give to You our plans.

‘Cause in the end it’s heaven,

And eternity our aim,

Not part of this world’s leaven,

‘Cause we call on Jesus’ name.

And the Spirit makes connection,

On both sides of the bar,

Sons and daughters intersection,

Ones near and very far.

You have our past and present,

All our tomorrows, too,

So put a Jesus accent,

On everything we do.

This circle here and yonder,

Please bless us now we pray,

And let us never wander,

Until Your judgment day.

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” (Hebrews 12:1, NIV)

This scripture tell us we are connected with all those who have finished the race and gone before us into heaven. We are somehow “surrounded” by them, and the legacy they left us should motivate and inspire us. We are called to throw off every weight and sin, and run with perseverance. This means that we never give up, even when we are emotionally, physically or spiritually tired. We draw strength from the Lord, and stay focused on Him and finishing the race. They did it, and so can we.

Lord, help us stay focused and finish the race, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Tim Cox, timcox.com. Used by permission. Thanks, Tim, and God bless you.