“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:7-8 NKJV)
Paul is a good example of perseverance. In Second Corinthians he gives an accounting, something we all should be able to do, give an accounting that proves our calling into the kingdom and shows our perseverance. Here is what Paul said, “Are they servants of Christ?—I am speaking as if insane—I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent adrift at sea. I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea, dangers among false brothers; I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.” Regardless of all that, Paul persevered. He fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith. So if you need a primary example of a Christian who persevered, you better call Paul!
To persevere, expressed this way by the preachers you heard as a child, is to keep on keeping on. To persevere, as defined in the dictionary, is to continue in a course of action, even in the face of difficulty. Need some human examples? Well, of course you better call Paul, if perchance you downplay that Jesus, the One who took on flesh and dwelt among us, persevered ultimately and unselfishly in His earthly ministry. And if you say that was too long ago, let me tell you that there are believers that are persevering through conditions they face today that will help you carry on.
Here is a case in point. I ran into an ex-student who was seeking his bachelor’s degree in Organizational Leadership. He had been in one of my classes back in 2008. I distinctly remember doing a Privilege Walk exercise with his class. In this exercise you asked certain questions. If it applied, you took a step forward. If it did not apply, you took a step backwards. You can learn more about this exercise by looking it up in your spare time. As I asked several questions, it caused all the students to reflect on whether or not they had experienced privilege in their life. It also caused them to think about hardships that they had to endure. My ex-student, surprisingly, was at the farthest point away from me as I asked the questions in a big open area on campus. He wasn’t too far away because I could see the tears running down from his eyes.
After class that one particular session, I asked him if he could stay around for a minute. I asked if he wanted to share how he felt during the exercise. He did want to share. I can’t share all the details, but he did talk about how he was raised by his grandmother, how she had all the furniture in the lower level on wooden planks to keep them from getting wet during heavy rains where water would enter seep into the house, and he described a number of hard times he went through. He said he was pursuing his degree to climb up the ladder of success. He had no scholarship. He had no parent paying for his college tuition and books. He worked full-time at nights at a local company, finally joining the supervisor ranks after years as an operative. His company was paying for his education via tuition reimbursement. His work schedule only allowed him to fit in one or two classes a semester. Look at all the time that has passed since he was in my class, thirteen years! When I ran into him, after exchanging a greeting, the first thing he told me was, “I graduated! I made it! I persevered!” His excitement caused “something in the air” to get in my eyes and cause me to tear up. Oh, let me tell the truth! Who am I kidding? He moved me emotionally, not by the fact that he remembered me or recognized me after all these years, but because he persevered.
My friend, whatever you are facing and possibly have been facing, hang on in there! Persevere! Strive to make it to your worthwhile goal or goals, especially when it comes to being a faithful soldier in the army of the Lord! Go enjoy your Saturday! Keep fighting on! Don’t forget to get some more motivation to keep the faith when you definitely go to worship service tomorrow. While you are there, thank the Lord for all He has done to sustain you and send you up higher in life and ask Him to be your source of perseverance, helping you to hold on through it all! Call Paul when you need Him! Call some people you know who have persevered when you need to! Definitely call on the Lord! Make the verse below a verse that will aptly and accurately in describing you! Be blessed!
“Therefore, my beloved brothers and sisters, be firm, immovable, always excelling in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” (I Corinthians 15:58 NASB)
Still committed to the climb,
Mark L. King