A Life Worthy

Tag: perseverance

  • One-a-Day Wednesday, 7/30/14

    number 1Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (James 1:4).

    Sticktoitiveness.

    That’s what my grandma used to call it.  James calls it perseverance, a term that works almost as well.  It’s that quality of taking one more step, trying one more time, going one more mile.

    You know what I think is really interesting?  James names perseverance as the character trait that will make us mature and complete.

    Not strength.

    Not wisdom.

    Not intelligence.

    Perseverance.

    Why that quality, apart from the others?  It’s not very exciting, not very romantic.  There’s really nothing very heroic about it at all.

    Which, I think, is precisely why God calls us to it.

    When I was in high school, I ran for the cross country team.  Cross country was a fall sport, but it wasn’t the fall sport.  That, of course, was football.  Football was played by the physical elite, big muscly dudes who went toe-to-toe under the bright lights in a stadium full of people.

    And cheerleaders.

    Cross country…not so much.  We rarely drew crowds, and I never saw a cheerleader.  We were the leftovers, guys who weren’t big enough to play football, but still wanted that sweaty locker room experience.  There was really only one lesson to learn in order to succeed at cross country.

    Don’t stop running.

    You see, the races were so stinking long.  No matter how big or how fast you were, it ultimately came down to who refused to quit.  It was not unusual to see a sprinter-type jump out to an early lead, only to falter after half a mile or so.  The winners were often skinny little guys who, in the end, just kept putting one foot in front of the other.

    I think that’s what God is looking for in us.  Sure, he wants us to be strong and wise and smart.  What he’s really looking for, however, is the one who will run the race, day or night, hot or cold, rain or shine, when no crowds are there to cheer them on.

    Are you that one?  Are you willing to run the race that most people never see?  Are you willing to keep putting one foot in front of the other, long past the point where you want to give up?

    Cause it’s a long race.

    If you’re in trials today, Beloved, know that God is using them to teach you good old sticktoitiveness.  Hold tight to his hand, and keep putting one foot in front of the other.  You’re in training, and you are going to make it.

    By his grace.

    For his glory.

    Keep running, Beloved.

  • One-a-Day Monday 7/28/14

    number 1Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. (James 1:2-3).

    Well, this is a dangerous passage.

    I start talking about the benefits of difficult times, and God decides to illustrate the point in your life, and…Uh Oh.

    But here it is, so here we go.

    I am not the man James would have me be.  Sorry, James.  No matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to muster up joy when, “Trials of many kinds” hit.  A grudging acceptance?  Maybe.  But joy?  Not even the impure kind, I’m afraid.  Frankly, I would like this particular verse better if James had said, “Consider it a horrific nightmare…but grit your teeth and endure it anyway.”

    I ran cross country in high school, and my coach had a fairly wide sadistic streak in him.  He used to send running through places like Death Hill and Bloody Ridge and The Plains of Endless Discomfort.  We ran mile after nasty mile in heat, in cold, in rain, in pain.

    I didn’t like those runs.

    But I liked the results.

    By the end of the season, I was more than I had been at the beginning.

    In that, there was joy.

    I hope you don’t encounter trials today, Beloved.  I kinda like you, and I’d just as soon not see you in pain.  But it’s not my call, and God has long since proven that he knows more than Michael.

    So when the trials come—James never said “If”—embrace them as a gift designed to make you stronger.

    I’m sorry it hurts.

    So is God.

    But hold tightly to him, know that he loves you, and let him take you through.

    Not around…through.

    See you on the other side, Beloved.

  • One-a-Day Tuesday, 6/17/14

    number 1For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance… (2 Peter 1:6).

    Some days are just hard.  You will fail; your self-control will falter.  Attacks will come, from within and without, that simply seem too much for you.  You will feel that, at best, you are spiritually stagnant, that you will never be the person you know God has called you to be.

    Hold on.

    Tight.

    This is when God calls you to persevere.  That is your part of the equation.  God supplies the strength—you must supply the will.  Are you praying for a deeper relationship with God, but not seeing any results?

    Persevere.  Press on.

    Are you struggling with sin or insecurity or loneliness, and you feel as if things will never change?

    Persevere.  Wrestle it until you pin it to the ground.

    Are you interceding for someone you love, but you feel like your prayers are powerless?

    Persevere.  Fight on.  Stand in the gap for your beloved, even as Christ has stood for you.

    Fight though you are tired.  Fight though you are discouraged.  Fight though you see no results in this world.  Fight through the sadness and pain and brokenness and fear and rejection and disappointment and loss and grief.

    Fight until he gives you the victory.

    Beloved, I don’t know what challenge you face today, but I know that you are called to persevere.  And I know something else—if it’s a battle worth fighting, then it’s a battle worth winning.

    So go win.