PERSEVERANCE
BREAD
3 so I
sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and
cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” Nehemiah 6:3 (NIV)
10 A
little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest-- 11 and poverty will come on you
like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man. Proverbs 6:10-11 (NIV)
12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will
grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And
this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony
to all nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:12-14 (NIV)
2 Consider
it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the
testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its
work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. James 1:2-4 (NIV)
1 Therefore,
since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off
everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run
with perseverance the race marked out for us. Hebrews
12:1 (NIV)
And
we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also
rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces
perseverance; 4 perseverance,
character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has
poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us. Romans 5:2-5 (NIV)
10 And
the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you
have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong,
firm and steadfast. 11 To him
be the power for ever and ever. Amen. 1
Peter 5:10-11 (NIV)
5 May
the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance. 2 Thessalonians 3:5 (NIV)
BUTTER
“Be of good cheer. Do not think
of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set
yourselves a difficult task, but you will succeed if you persevere; and you
will find a joy in overcoming obstacles. Remember, no effort that we make to
attain something beautiful is ever lost.” Helen Keller
“When
the Bible speaks of ‘following Jesus’ it is proclaiming a discipleship which
will liberate mankind from all man-made dogma, from every burden and
oppression, from every anxiety and torture which afflicts the conscience. If they follow Jesus, men escape from the
hard yoke of their own laws, and submit to the kindly yoke of Jesus
Christ. But does this mean that we can
ignore the seriousness of His command?
Far from it! We can only achieve
perfect liberty and enjoy fellowship with Jesus when His command, His call to
absolute discipleship, is appreciated in its entirety. Only the man who follows the command of Jesus
without reserve, and submits unresistingly to His yoke, finds his burden easy,
and under its gentle pressure receives the power to persevere in the right
way. The command of Jesus is
hard—unutterably hard—for those who try to resist it.” Dietrich
Bonhoeffer
“Sheep are not all
the clean and cuddly creatures they look from a distance. On the contrary, they
are dirty and subject to nasty pests.
They need to be regularly dipped in strong chemicals to rid them of
lice, ticks and worms. They are also
unintelligent and obstinate….Some in our spheres can be a great trial to us and
vice versa. So how shall we persevere in
loving the unlovable? Only, I think, by
remembering how precious they are.” John Stott
“He who
perseveres makes every difficulty an advancement and every contest a victory.” Charles Caleb Colton
“Expect
great things from God; attempt great things for God.” William Carey
“You can fight with confidence where you are sure of victory. With Christ and for Christ, victory is certain.” Bernard of Clairvaux
“Nothing is more
common than unfulfilled potential.”
Howard G. Hendricks
HEART SAVOR
- · I am to keep my eyes on Jesus the Perfecter of my faith – running with perseverance the race marked out for me.
- · It is God who makes me strong, firm and steadfast as I walk through every circumstance in life. It is He who blesses me with great peace and joy. This does not come from the world which only takes.
- · Perseverance produces character in me.
