Persistence

Luke 18: 1-8

1Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. 3And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'
4"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "
6And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

Persistence is a quality we all must possess. This life, while it is short in terms of eternity, can seem like it will never end. We typically feel this way when our path gets a little rough, or the waters become murky. These are the times when it is easy to throw in the towel. We throw our hands up in the air, and exclaim that we just cannot do it anymore. This is actually the moment that we should be on our knees offering up our prayers for persistence. We should ask fro the strength to see the hardship through.
Often people will say why can’t this just stop. I have to say that they are missing the point. It is not a matter of making the rough patch come to an end, We should not be asking to have our load lightened, we should be persistent no matter the weight of the load or how bleak things might seem. Things worth having are worth fighting for; as a result it does no matter how difficult the struggle. Often you will find the more value something has to you the harder you will have to struggle for it.

I have said before that Christ saved us “right now” all we have to do to get that acceptance is accept him. That cannot be disputed. The next step in our journey requires persistence. We are told that we will be judged by our knowledge, and that we should strive for knowledge of the Lord in an effort to reach spiritual maturity. This path can prove daunting to say the least. That is why I say we should strive to be like the widow, we have to continue to return to the Word in an effort to strengthen our faith. We cannot simply give up because it might become difficult, or come in contact with someone who might try to shake our faith. We have to find the strength inside of us, the strength that the Lord gave us, and carry on. Returning time and time again, never tiring, and never quitting.

Paul tells us in Galatians 6:9 ….. for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. This is just another indication that we must be persistent in our lives, we have to continue our journey looking for more knowledge, and not giving in when the times get tough. The first time Christ came he was looking for the sinners, hoping to call them to repentance, however the second time he comes, he will be looking for lives full of faith. Who he finds will depend greatly on how many of us do not give up.

Peace,
Rev. Thetford