Tag Archives: endurance

Max Lucado

Max Lucado – Today’s Pop Quiz

Leave a comment

 

Each day has a pop quiz. And some seasons are final exams. Brutal, sudden pitfalls of stress, sickness, or sadness. What is the purpose of the test? James 1:3-4 says, “For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything.”

God hasn’t forgotten you. Just the opposite. He has chosen to train you. The Hebrew verb for test comes from a word that means “to take a keen look at; to choose.” Dismiss the notion that God does not see your struggle. On the contrary, God is fully engaged. He is the Teacher; we are the students. Trust His training. You’ll get through this. He can make something good out of your mess!

From You’ll Get Through This

Greg Laurie

Greg Laurie – Guided from Above   

Leave a comment

greglaurie

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us. —Romans 5:3–5

The fact that God has chosen us, has forgiven us, and has given us free access into His presence means that our existence isn’t some cosmic accident, and that our lives are guided neither by chance nor luck, neither by fate nor karma. It means we are guided by His providence.

There is, therefore, real meaning and purpose when I go through tribulation. It is not for nothing. Before we met Christ, we might have thought of hardships or difficulties as random effects of nature and something merely to be endured. But now we can know that God is in control of all circumstances that surround our lives as believers.

As Paul said, “We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.” (Romans 5:3 NLT). Paul wasn’t simply gritting his teeth and enduring these experiences; he was glorying in them. This doesn’t mean that Paul was a masochist. He had made a choice. When he was going through hardship, he decided that he wasn’t going to become bitter; he was going to become better.

We have the same choice. When difficult days come, we can get mad at God and turn away from Him, or we can embrace that difficulty and attempt to learn what He seeks to teach us.

Today’s devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013

Charles Stanley

Charles Stanley – Running With Endurance

Leave a comment

Charles Stanley

Hebrews 12:1-3

Nobody wakes up on the morning of a marathon and suddenly decides, Hey, I think I’ll go down and run the race today. Long-distance running requires training, and lots of it. The typical marathon runner spends months preparing for the race. He pulls himself out of bed early and hits the street. Focusing on his goal, he pushes through physical and mental exhaustion. He watches what he eats, gets plenty of sleep, and runs—regularly. The main goal of all of this training is to build endurance. While not easy, the discipline is essential to running 26.2 miles.

Since Scripture compares the Christian life to a race, we can assume that endurance is essential for our success as well. And what builds spiritual stamina? The apostle James points out that dealing with trials strengthens us. In fact, in James 1:2-3, he even tells us to welcome difficulties because “the testing of your faith produces endurance.”

He is talking about the inner strength that allows us to face any difficulty without quitting. A runner needs such strength for a race. So even though the training hurts, he conditions his body to be able to reach the finish line. For believers, the process is similar, except that our training comes through trials. As we face different challenges in the power of the Spirit, God builds us up more and more.

Are you facing a hardship today? God wants you to trust Him and then ask yourself, Am I willing to go through this intense workout today in order to win the race tomorrow?