5 Minutes with Jesus is a daily devotional series for people in the midst of real life, whether facing anxiety, grief, questions of purpose, or simply needing encouragement and connection. Hosted by Sheila Walsh, each five-minute episode offers Biblical truth, honest reflections on faith and emotions, and closes with a moment of prayer.
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| Sheila Walsh: When Motivation Fades | 5 Minutes with Jesus | January 19, 2026
- There's a lot of things that
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- Are going on all around us that we can pay
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- A lot of attention to.
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- We can watch the news every night, or read what's
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- Going on on social media and pay so much attention to that.
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- Or we can do what jesus did
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- Because he never lost sight of where he was headed.
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- That glorious end with god the father.
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- How do you stay motivated in your own faith?
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- Tell me when you don't feel it.
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- Or maybe something happens in your life
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- That's so discouraging.
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- And you think, how do i keep going, lord?
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- In situations like that, i often turn to hebrews chapter 12,
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- Verses one and two in the new living
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- Translation, read like this.
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- Therefore, since we're surrounded by such
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- A huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith,
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- Let us strip off every weight that slows us down,
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- Especially the sin that so easily trips us up
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- And let us run with endurance the race god has set before us.
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- And we do this by keeping our eyes on jesus,
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- A champion who initiates and perfects our faith
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- Because of the joy awaiting him.
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- He endured the cross, disregarding its shame,
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- And now he's seated in the place of honor beside god's throne.
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- I really love how eugene peterson interprets verse two
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- In the message bible. this is what he says.
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- Keep your eyes on jesus
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- Who both began and finished this race we are in.
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- Study how he did it
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- Because he never lost sight of where he was headed.
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- That exhilarating finish in and worth god,
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- He could put up with anything along the way.
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- Cross shame, whatever.
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- And now he's there in the place of honor, right alongside god.
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- I don't know if what 2025 was like for you.
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- I find a really challenging year in so many ways.
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- I saw so many things happening that were hard to understand.
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- You know, particularly things
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- Like you would hear of someone i can think of, people
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- I shared a platform with as a speaker
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- Who now said that they don't believe any longer,
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- And they've walked away from their faith.
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- I find that devastating.
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- Or you hear of tragedies happening around the world
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- And think, lord, what is going on in the world?
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- But then something happened to me
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- That really focused the whole
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- I whole understanding of what do you do
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- When you just don't know what to do?
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- And it started with a silly little accident.
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- I was literally one day
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- Just throwing my head back to get my hair out of my face
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- And something snapped in my neck,
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- And i thought i had actually broken my neck.
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- I was in so much pain and immediately threw up.
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- And eventually barry, my husband, was able to get me
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- Carefully into the car and drive me to the emergency room.
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- And i was so nervous the whole way
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- Because any little bump you think, oh,
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- Am i doing more damage for me?
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- Got there.
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- They said were really, really busy today. you know,
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- It could be 5 or 6 hours before we can see you.
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- Turns out we were actually there for 18 hours.
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- It was quite a long night and a day,
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- But it was a lesson that god taught me in the middle of it.
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- That was so incredible.
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- Because as i sat there
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- And i was looking around the emergency room
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- And just so many people were struggling,
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- This one gentleman was trying to get some help
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- And no one would pay him any attention.
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- And eventually i was taken back and i was put into one of those
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- Mri machines.
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- You know, where they tell you to close your eyes and, you know,
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- Try not to panic if you feel claustrophobic.
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- But as i was laying there, i found myself saying,
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- You know what, lord, i don't get any of this.
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- I know you're good.
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- I know you're loving.
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- I know you're in control.
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- But there's so much happening
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- That's hard to understand at the moment.
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- How did you do this? jesus.
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- And so whenever i get stuck, i always turn to god's word.
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- I don't know what part god's word plays in your life,
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- But if you've never really paid
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- Much attention, i really encourage you
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- To get hold of a bible and a translation
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- That you can understand and begin to see the plan
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- That god has laid out from the beginning
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- To the very end of how we make it through this life.
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- When life is tough.
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- But it was that understanding of keep your eyes on jesus,
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- Who both began and finished this race.
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- We ran study how he did it because he never lost
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- Sight of where he was headed
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- When it said he could put up with anything along the way.
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- The cross.
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- Shame
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- If you actually look into the original greek words,
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- Which i love to do.
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- Sometimes it talks about the he endured the cross actually
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- Says staying in a place much longer than you expected.
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- Maybe some of you out there right now
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- Thinking, lord, this should be done by now.
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- Why am i still in this place?
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- And then it goes on to sing despised the shame.
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- Do you know what actually means the hebrew root?
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- It means paid little attention to.
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- There's a lot of things
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- That are going on all around us that we can pay
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- A lot of attention to.
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- We can watch the news every night, or read what's
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- Going on on social media and pay so much attention to that. or
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- We can do what jesus did
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- Because he never lost sight of where he was headed.
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- That glorious end with god the father.
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- If you have placed
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- Your trust in jesus, just know that no matter
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- What's going on in your life right now, you are loved.
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- You are seen.
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- You are being held even when you don't feel as if you are.
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- So when you feel
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- A little discouraged this week, this year.
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- Lift up your eyes.
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- Keep your eyes on jesus.
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- Study how he did it and know that
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- Sometimes we do stay in a place longer than we thought.
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- But that does not mean that god's forgotten about you.
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- And sometimes we can determine, am i going to pay attention
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- To all the little things that are driving me crazy,
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- Or i'm going to pay little attention to that,
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- And i'm going to keep my gaze fixed on jesus?
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- Let me pray for you.
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- Father, i want to thank you so much
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- That you are willing to send jesus, your only son,
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- To this earth, to walk where we walk to feel the things
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- That we feel, to walk through things will never understand
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- Because they were so devastating for him.
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- But i want to thank you that because of the example
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- Of christ's life that we've been left a map,
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- That we can keep our eyes fixed on you.
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- So i ask, lord, for anyone who's watching today,
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- Who is struggling, who feels like,
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- How long is this going to go on for?
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- Lord, would you give them grace for this moment?
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- And i ask it in the powerful name of jesus.
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- Amen.
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- Those.
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