I think about perseverance as having the courage not to give up. Napoleon Bonaparte said, “Courage isn’t having the strength to go on, it is going on when you don’t have the strength.” Wow. Fits how I’ve felt lately, to be sure.
It’s so hard to go on when you’re in the middle of trials and tribulations. I want to give up and hide under the covers for days at a time. But what I really need is to readjust my thinking. Courage is the ordinary attempting the extraordinary. Reaching out way beyond my normal comfort zone. Even if others don’t see it as a stretch.
Hmm. Comfort zone. The perfect opposite of courage. Fear and the endless search for comfort are why I don’t want to stretch out. Do I, do you, really want to take a chance and persevere when so much is at stake? Like our pride, our reputation, and our ability to appear in public. I don’t know about y’all, but I can make the tiniest error in judgment, like buying a cute butterfly T-shirt and wearing it the next day. What’s wrong with that? Only a problem when you get home and notice the clear strip of tape in the front that shouts your size that you forgot to remove when you decided to wear it. I cringe to think how many people wondered about my state of mind. I’d like to say this has only happened once, but…
Courage. Going on when you don’t have the strength. When you’re embarrassed. When you’ve failed. When you’re too tired to keep trying. Every morning when you wake up and decide to face one more day, and do the best you can.
I release all my fears, worries, and anxious moments to God and take the next step. By faith. Because that’s where we find courage. We have faith in the God who tells us we’re never alone, never without help, never left behind.
God’s word says:
- He will find me. Psalm 139 says He knows me, where I am, what my thoughts are.
- He will guide me. Psalm 37 says the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. I’m good, not in myself, but because Jesus lives in my heart.
- He will save me. Psalm 103 says He removes my transgressions as far as the east is from the west.
I dare to persevere because of Him. In Him, I can do all things.
What helps you when you struggle to keep going? Please share in the comments …
