Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. - Hebrews 10:19-25. 

In the United Kingdom, one of their largest power generating stations was virtually shut down because of a chimney problem. An old, unused chimney smokestack started swaying in the high winds. A spokesperson said of the situation at that point, "Only the most essential staff are at the plant, we are carrying out a risk assessment." 150 of the plant’s 200 employees were sent home during the crisis. But thankfully, after the winds died down the chimney had stabilized by the next day and the plant was again operating under normal conditions. 

The writer of Hebrews is speaking to Christians when he says, "Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering…." It seems there was some wavering going on in the early church much like a chimneystack wavering in a high wind. In our modern culture, and a world of increasing danger, it appears that there is more and more of the wavering going on. We think, will there be another terrorist attack? Will they detonate a dirty bomb in our country? Or, do they have a suitcase nuclear device? Or, will it be a biological attack using smallpox before we can all be vaccinated? Maybe it will be anthrax? Maybe it will be VX gas or some other deadly chemical agent that they will use? Others of us are more worried about our financial situation, and whether we will be able to continue putting food on the table. Others are concerned about their health situation, which is growing worse. 

There is a multitude of winds blowing against our lives. There are the winds of drug abuse and the winds of lust. Some of the winds threaten to blow us apart, and it seems like we are being assaulted by a tornado or a hurricane. But whatever it is, it is not that much different than some of the storms the early Christians faced. The writer of Hebrews assures them and us that, "He who promised is faithful." We must remind ourselves that we are no longer what we once were but have, "boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us…." He is faithful, and we may come to Him boldly through the blood of our Savior. He who has saved us has the power to hold us, sustain us, and keep our wavering faith standing even through these storms, which keep coming upon us. 

The "day" is approaching when our Lord will return and surely that "day" is closer now than ever before. As we see the "day" approaching let us stand through His faithfulness provoking, encouraging and loving one another "and so much the more!"