Perseverance: Maintaining Christian faith through the trying times of life

This is my first attempt to "blog". Several weeks ago I used this outline to teach the Adult Sunday School class at First Love Church in Texas City.
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Eph 6:18
18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints

Heb 12:1
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience (perseverance) the race that is set before us,

Mic 7:8
8 Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD shall be a light unto me.

• The difference between perseverance and determination is that one comes from a strong will, and the other from a strong won't. ~ Henry Ward Beecher
• The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places. ~ Author Unknown
• When the world says, "Give up," Hope whispers, "Try it one more time." ~Author Unknown

• When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt

PERSEVERANCE is defined by Holman Bible Dictionary as maintaining Christian faith through the trying times of life.

• There are two sides to perseverance: Physical & Spiritual
• The Physical side requires us to make up our minds we will follow God
• On the Spiritual side, we must determine to follow God despite what happens around us; regardless of what others may say, regardless of how others act.
• Having Physical and Spiritual Perseverance will provide you the strength to endure.
  

Gen 32:24-28
24 And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day.
25 And when he saw that he prevailed not against him, he touched the hollow of his thigh; and the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint, as he wrestled with him.
26 And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.
27 And he said unto him, What is thy name? And he said, Jacob.
28 And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.
KJV

• Jacob was left alone – He could have easily ran away, but he was ready to push past the current dilemma
• Jacob wrestled – He had to engage in the fight – A Conscience decision was made to engage in effecting the outcome.
• The angel grew tired because Jacob would not let go – What we do physically will effect us spiritually. The angel (a spiritual being) had to take more drastic measures in order to get Jacob (a physical being) to let go, but even then, Jacob’s perseverance held strong. I will not let you go until you bless me!!
  

• Jacob’s Name change – No more a deceiver, con man, or liar, but he became a Prince of God

Consider this!!
Principles of Perseverance

• Perseverance means succeeding because you are determined to, not destined to.
• The difference between a successful person and others is not lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of determination.
  

Have the mind set: We will either find a way or make one.
One CEO said it this way: “We are determined to win the battle. We will fight them until hell freezes over, and then, if we have to, we’ll fight them on the ice”

• Perseverance recognizes life is not a long race, but many short ones in succession

• “Success consist of a series of little daily victories”
• Perseverance is needed to release most of Life’s rewards
• Answer these questions:
• Did the Wright Brokers ever quit? No!
• Did Charles Lindbergh ever quit? No!
• Did Lance Armstrong ever quit? No!
• Did Thorndike McKester ever quit? The reason that name does not sound familiar is because he quit.
  

• “Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up” – Thomas Edison (a man who failed more than 1,000 when inventing the incandescent light bulb)

• Perseverance draws sweetness out of adversity
• The trials and pressures of life – and how we face them – often define us.
  

“I Don’t Regret a Mile” – Howard Goodman

I've Dreamed Many A Dream That's Never Come True,
I've Seen Them Vanish At Dawn
But Enough Of My Dreams Have Come True
To Make Me Keep Dreaming On.

I've Prayed Many A Prayer
That Seemed No Answer Would Come,
Though I'd Waited So Patient And Long
But Enough Answers Have Come To My Prayers
To Make Me Keep Praying On.

I've Sown Many A Seed That's Fallen By The Wayside,
For The Birds To Feed Upon
But I've Held Enough Sheaves In My Hands
To Make Me Keep Sowing On.

I've Trusted Many A Friend That's Failed Me
And Left Me To Weep Alone
But Enough Of My Friends Have Been True-Blue
To Make Me Keep Trusting On.

I've Drained The Cup Of Disappointment And Pain,
And Gone Many A Day Without A Song
But I've Sipped Enough Nectar From The Roses Of Life,
To Make Me Want To Live On.

• Giving up when adversity threatens can make a person bitter. Persevering through adversity makes one better.

• Perseverance has a compounding effect on Life
• Every successful person finds that great success lies just beyond the point when they’re convinced their idea is not going to work.
• Do the right thing day after day. There are no shortcuts to anything worthwhile.
• Dreams become reality when we keep our commitment to them.

• Perseverance means stopping not because you’re tired but because the task is done.
• “Success is a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don’t quit when you’re tired – you quit when the gorilla is tired” – Robert Strauss
• Draw from your reserves, and rely on your character, and keep going.

• Perseverance doesn’t demand more then we have but all that we have.
• “In every triumph there is a lot of try”

• Perseverance means more than trying. It means more then working hard. Perseverance is an investment. It is a willingness to bind oneself emotionally, intellectually, physically, and spiritually to an idea until it has been completed.
  

• Perseverance demands a lot, but everything you give is an investment to yourself.

The Five Enemies of Perseverance

• A Lifestyle of Giving Up
• A Wrong belief that life should be easy
• A Wrong belief that success is a destination
• A Lack of Resiliency
• “You can’t get much done in life if you only work on the days you feel good” – Jerry West
• A Lack of Vision
• Prov 29:18 - Where there is no vision, the people perish
  

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A great reference is "Talent is Never Enough" by John Maxwell. I highly recommend this book for anyone who is in any secular or church leadership position.

Blessings

Eric Bolenbaucher