THE POWER OF PERSISTENCE

Persistence breaks resistance!

“Never, never, never give up” – Winston Churchill.

How do you overcome the temptation to give up when you’re fed up? How do you find the courage to continue in the face of adversity? How do you keep going even after series of failed attempts? How do you find the strength to push when you’re weak? How do you sustain your passion, zeal, enthusiasm in difficult times?

Persistence my friends, is the secret to all success. It’s the difference between a successful result and a failed result. Your talent, wit, skill, strength, education, resources will all get tested and sometimes exhausted in your pursuits. But your persistence and perseverance will eventually cause you to strike gold.  Your breaking point is your breakthrough point.

In Luke 18:2-5 (KJV), Jesus shares with us the power of persistence. The parable describes two people – a Judge and a Widow. The Judge by virtue of his position had a certain degree of power and as a result had no regard for God nor care for the people. The Widow on the other hand, helpless and weak. The death of her husband had left her without an advocate, a helper or support and some wicked person had exploited her vulnerability. In her demand for justice, she was up against an unjust Judge – a man who just didn’t give two hoots.

Many of us are like the Widow; it just seems life’s against us. We’ve lost a loved one, failed many times, tried and tried yet nothing seems to work, we’re tired of life, hurting, helpless, or contemplating suicide. This is a hard place to be in and perseverance or endurance doesn’t come naturally. Guys, it is not easy and no one ever said life will be easy. “Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivereth him out of them ALL.” – Psalm 34:19 (KJV). Persistence is a decision everyone should make – to trust and hold God to His word.

Though the unjust Judge continued to deny the Widow her right for a while, she wasn’t deterred. She knew that her only weapon and resource was persistence and she utilized it well. Eventually, the man who stood between her and what she so earnestly sought stood for her. He said “though I fear not God, nor regard man; Yet because this widow troubleth me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.” So a helpless, defenseless but relentless woman wins even in the face of hopelessness.

Beautiful people, we’ve all taken hits or are currently being hit. It’s called LIFE and it will continue to test us until we are 6 feet under.  The good news is we are always one attempt away from our glory, success story, victory song, bestseller, beautiful relationship, dream job, dream home, business, graduation, accomplishment, breakthrough, addiction free and so on if we don’t give up.

James 1:2-4 (NLT): ² Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. ³ For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. ⁴ So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.

I pray that in our seemingly hopeless situations, we’ll be able to find grace in God and His word to endure and persevere. I leave you all with some people who persisted against all odds:

1. Thomas Edison tried 9,999 times until he perfected the light bulb.
2. Colonel Sanders, founder of KFC was rejected 1,007 times before finding a taker for his chicken recipe.
3. Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before finally getting financing for his dream of creating Walt Disney World.
4. Ludwig van Beethoven (composer, pianist) became deaf at the age of 30 and composed most of his beloved works after he lost his hearing.
5. Helen Keller (author) was deaf and blind from the age of 19 months. She wrote 12 books, various articles and was the first blind person to receive a Bachelor of Arts degree.
6. J.K. Rowling’s manuscript of her first Harry Potter book was turned down by 12 publishers before Bloomsbury picked it up for an advance of just £1,500. The series went on to sell more than 450 million copies worldwide.
7. Michael Jordan, considered by many the GOAT once said, “I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I’ve been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life.
8. Steve Jobs was kicked off his own company by members of his own board of directors. But he came back, got elected as Chairman of Apple and his legacy, Apple lives on.

Stay Strong Friends!!