“Consider it pure joy, my brothers,
whenever you fact trials of many kinds,
because you know that
the testing of your faith develops
perseverance.
Perseverance must finish its
work
so that you may be mature and
complete, not lacking anything.”
James 1:2-4
Through the above Scripture we see that God wants us to be
mature and complete, not lacking anything!
He has chosen The Path of Perseverance
to get us there. After years of
marriage, self-reflection and great need I have concluded that the Lord wisely
wants me to fully understand perseverance! I’ve also noticed that He humorously
tucked a streak of perfection into my DNA in order to propel me in this quest.
With that said, I have maintained a steady, pounding heart
in full pursuit of perseverance. Many of
us are in situations that require quite a bit of personal
persistence! Let’s look deeper into this
topic to find some understanding and to get a grip on the requirements of
perseverance. Here is the gist of it:
Perseverance is:
“A steady persistence in a course of action;
Especially in spite of difficulties,
Obstacles and discouragement.”
There are three key words that stand out to me: difficulties, obstacles and
discouragement! After re-reading that
several times, I’d say that it would take a personality full of tenacity to
stay the course!!! As it states in
Romans 8:29-30, God knew me before I was born, predestined my life and formed
my DNA to fulfill his plan; so, I’ve been wired for my calling! That clears a few things up; however, the need
for perseverance can be exhausting. By
its very definition it can be discouraging.
What do we do when we come to a place were our tenacity is tired and our
grit is grounded out! What do we do when
our perseverance needs some perseverance?
Seems like a catch-22. I looked
that up too; it means “an absurd situation”. Yep!
That sums it up!
Interestingly, I looked back through an old journal and came
upon a few pages that discuss this very subject. The conclusion I came to, several years ago,
was that “God wants me to persevere at perseverance.” I was shocked and had forgotten that I had
already resolved this dilemma once. I
suppose we do tend to forget important things sometimes; even deep life-lessons
that we assume we will never forget!
What scripture says, about those of us in the family of God,
is that we will never be abandoned. Nothing
can separate us from the Love of God…not even our inability to endure! Romans 8:28-36 teaches the following:
- “If God is for us, who can be against us?”
- “In all things God works for the good of those who love him.”
- Christ “is at the right hand of God …interceding for us.” (Praying for us)
Romans 8:37-39 finishes up with “one of the most comforting promises in all of scripture”1
‘No, in all things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither
death nor life,
neither angels nor demons,
neither present nor the future,
nor any powers, neither height nor depth,
nor anything else in all creation ,
will be able to separate us from the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Nothing can separate me from being loved by my Creator,
God. Not my failures or flaws; not my
hang-ups or setbacks; neither the end of my abilities nor my lack of tenacity! And, especially NOT the daily difficulties through which I flounder!!! Nothing!
“Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings,
because we know that suffering produces perseverance,
perseverance, character; and character, hope.
And hope does not disappoint us,
because God has poured out his love into our hearts
By the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”
Romans 5:3-5
Following the building blocks in the above scripture we see
that perseverance builds character! That
is what the Lord is after; not my comfort but my character! Going back to the original scripture at the
top of this page we see that God wants me to be mature and complete; not
lacking anything. The Path of
perseverance is the way; however, when my perseverance needs some perseverance God's Word provides this advice:
“Let us then approach the Throne of Grace with confidence,
so that we may receive mercy
and find grace to help us
in our time of need.”
Hebrews 4:16
Song Recommendation:
Even When it Hurts
BY: Hillsong United
1-Foot notes in the NIV for
Romans 8: 37-39
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