Perseverance

The word persevere means to continue in a course of action even in the face of difficulty or with little or no indication of success.  The truth is perseverance is hard. It means moving forward in the most challenging of circumstances, believing when everything around us looks uncertain, focusing on a vision that seems completely out of sight, and knowing that even when those around us don’t believe, there is that still small voice that says…”keep going.”

It is interesting that the areas we have the biggest challenges in are often the areas that carry the greatest reward. I see this in teaching Grief Recovery. Right around week 4 – 6 the process gets really difficult for many. People want to give up, they want to stop coming, they want to run. Yet, time after time, I see those same people come out on the other side with tremendous transformation. It is a beautiful experience. One that makes being a facilitator completely worth while.

I think it is so easy to give in and not persevere. In anything really. We live in a culture built on instant gratification, from weight loss, to money, to relationships we are bombarded with a daily message of “it’s all about you and it’s all about NOW”. Talk about something being contrary to perseverance. Yet, there is something truly beautiful about perseverance. Something magical, miraculous and faith building. People with stories of perseverance move us. They give us a gift that the here and now message of our culture just can’t deliver.

There is an older gentleman that I see fairly often when I go for my morning hike. The hike is not mountain climbing; however, it is quite steep. This gentleman runs up the incline. I’m not certain how far he goes, I just know that he goes much further (and faster) than I do. No matter how winded he is, he always looks up and gives a cheery hello to everyone he sees. The thing about this man is that he only has one arm. I love when he passes me by because when I watch him run off in the distance I am motivated to live.

Yesterday, I met with a dear friend of mine. Hers is a story of perseverance. She has been married for 17 years. For several years she struggled in her marriage. She felt bitterness for her husband. Yet, she persevered. Her marriage is just the tip of the iceberg in her story of perseverance. I didn’t know her back then, yet, all I can say is that I am extremely grateful for what those years of perseverance have done to shape her and her life. She has a beautiful marriage, wonderful family and a heart that is grateful, humble and giving. She has an appreciation for life that makes you want to live better. She touches nearly everyone she meets in a beautiful way.

As much as I want to give up on areas of my life that are not moving the way I want them to, meeting with my beautiful friend or seeing the man on the hike reminds me that not giving up is really the most freeing thing I could ever do. Choosing to sit in the vision that God has instilled in my heart as opposed to looking around at my circumstances and running is really the better option. It makes room for a miracle. It leaves room for a divine encounter in a human experience. There is no substitute for that. There’s a great movie (based on a true story) called “Faith Like Potatoes”. One of the best quotes from that movie is,  “The condition for a miracle is difficulty, however the condition for a great miracle is not difficulty, but impossibility. “