31 Days: Pathway to Perseverance - Where It All Begins


If we were to meet, you most likely would not think of me as a fierce, lion-like personality.  I am an introvert by nature and most often I am described as a calm presence.  That description always makes me smile, because internally, I feel anything but calm. I live with a fair amount of internal chaos, self-doubt and the world's loudest critic living in my own self-talk and self-perceptions every day. 

It does not take a fearless person who runs headlong into danger and the unknown to experience trials or to persevere despite challenging circumstances.  I have experienced pain and deep, deep loss. I have walked through the darkest moments with my family and friends. I give God the glory for these moments both in the dark and when we come out of the other side.  I am a survivor—we are survivors.  

There has to be more to perseverance than simple white-knuckle, scrape the dirt out of our knees and elbows after army crawling through the muck that can creep into our lives. Everything has purpose and value, even true-grit in the face of opposition or pain.  So, what does godly perseverance look like?  

I think we can see glimpses of godly perseverance and we begin to understand why we both fear and embrace the purpose for becoming people who endure when we read Romans 5:3-5. 
  
"We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character. And character, hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us" Romans 5:3-5.

If you walk this 31-day journey with me, I think together we will discover that perseverance can be seen through the eyes of a child, perseverance may look like presence, testimony and encouragement, sitting in the dark, carrying on for others when they are not able to carry on themselves and that we are changed as a result.  

Here we go, hand-in-hand, heart-to-heart on the pathway to perseverance. 



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