Ah, the Olympics: LOVE. Watching the entirety of the games brings me pure joy! No matter what the event is, the athletes endured hours upon hours, and years upon years of training. Through the highs and lows of their training, all of their eyes were fixed on a shared goal: earning the chance to compete at the Olympics in London. To take it a step further, their ultimate vision is to earn a gold medal. I can relate to the athletes on two different levels. One, being a former athlete, I know the blood, sweat, and tears poured into a sport for the common goal of succeeding on the court, field, or track. Two, being in the trenches of wanting a child, we are so fixed on the end result of wanting a child that we have also poured out blood, sweat, and tears along the way. In light of the Olympic athletes and our current state of perseverance I have been reminded of a passage in Hebrews:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:1-3
Okay, hold onto that passage for a moment……the past week and a half my mind has been flooded with thoughts of perseverance and endurance. These internal discussions were prompted from the Beth Moore study I am doing in James. If you ever have a chance to pick up one of her studies, do it! She is very impactful. This past week she had us read James chapter five. Give it a look if you have a minute. Here are the two verses that spoke to me the most:
10 Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
James 5:10-11
Wow. First of all, if you are unfamiliar with Job’s life, I would recommend reading about it at some point in time: very humbling. Basically, EVERYTHING was taken from Job and he still decided to trust and honor God in all that he did. Job persevered through the hardship of losing his wife, his children, his extended family, his home, and his livestock. He did not lose sight of God’s faithfulness and goodness. Job is my new favorite bible character.
Thanks for holding onto the Hebrews passage from up above. Do you see why I chose it? What race are you currently running? Who am I to sit down here on earth and question the meaning behind persevering for a child? Look at the example provided in the passage: JESUS. He not only endured the cross for our sins, he JOYFULLY did this.
In pursuit of joy this week I have found a new meaning to perseverance. Recalling the attitude of Job and Jesus are helpful reminders that I too, can persevere. And like it says at the end of James 5:11, the Lord is full of compassion: he has my ‘good’ in mind at all times. And finally, I would like to leave you with a profound quote from Beth Moore’s lesson about James 5:10-11,
“God knows how everything will turn out. And, for every single person who belongs to Him, it turns out well. We are not the exceptions.”
No comments:
Post a Comment