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The writer of Hebrews uses the analogy of a race to illustrate how we live our spiritual lives. No one would run a race with extra weight or encumbrances. Instead, they would do anything they could to win the race. Anything keeping us from running the race to the best of our abilities is a handicap. Of course, the race in Hebrews 12 was not an actual contest of speed but was a spiritual battle. When we think about handicaps in this spiritual race, we often think of human, fleshly, disadvantages. We might think about physical challenges, but sometimes handicaps can be about finances, problems, or the season of life we are in. Some people might think about their job, their boss, people they work with, or their spouse, which is holding them back from being more spiritual. We find all kinds of excuses for why we are not in a place to worship God and have a good relationship with Him. The truth is all of those things are not our real handicaps. If we look around, we can find people who have been in the same circumstances we have and have a good relationship with God. The real trouble is not what is happening around us; the real problem is inside us. What really holds us back? It is not the wounds of life; it is how we react to and deal with those wounds. It is not what has happened to us that is hurting us; it is how we deal with those things that are hurting us. Wounds that never heal. Wrongs that we allow to fester and destroy us. Our inability to forgive those that have wronged us. The greatest hindrance in our lives is not what people have done to us; it is the wounded pride we further and foster in our hearts. We justify our anger because of what happened to us, but that is the very thing that is keeping us from winning our spiritual battles. There is conflict in people’s lives not because it is unresolvable but because of the pride of the hurt person and their inability to forgive. This inability to forgive and to leave the past behind us is our real handicap.