Passion, Persistence and Perseverance
by Steve Martin
“I see
everything you're doing for me. Impressive! The love and the faith, the service
and persistence. Yes, very impressive! You get better at it every day.”
(Revelations 2:19 THE MESSAGE)
“If
the passion isn’t strong enough, the perseverance won’t last enough.”
That
thought came as I was meditating on…or rather silently fretting about…the 14
hour drive ahead of us. Heading out on the long road ahead, in the middle of
winter, through the Carolina mountains, to the plains of the Midwest, wasn’t
what I wanted to be doing these next short days. But that’s where Laurie, my
son Ben and I were headed.
We
were spending Christmas with the family in Illinois, after not getting up there
for the past five years, for this special holiday. I was keeping my word made
to Laurie the previous spring, when the daffodils were blooming, the robins were
singing, and life all around was fresh and abounding.
No
longer did I desire to get out on the open road, as I did years ago, and drive 12-14
hours straight. It just didn’t appeal to me anymore, and I was dreading the
long two days behind the Hyundai Elantra wheel. Not only that, but leaving on a
Saturday, driving for two days, and having to start the return back on
Christmas Day afternoon, to be in the office for one day, Friday, because my
boss wanted me back for an upcoming event…
Well,
I just wasn’t rejoicing and singing songs of merry.
“If
the passion isn’t strong enough, the perseverance won’t last enough.”
When
what I knew was the Holy Spirit speaking this word right about then to me, my
attitude began to change. It was important to keep my word. It was indeed going
to be special to be with Laurie’s mom Lorraine Unzicker, now 92, and her two
sisters (Linda and Judy) and their families. That was what my heart and head
were to focus on right now. Not the physical cost of getting there.
When
faced with a situation that you know will take some stamina and persistence, we
need to dig deep into our soul and count on the Lord to give grace and
provision for the task ahead. Often we are given the choice to take the easy
road, stay in our comfy chair wasting time in front of the TV, or move forward
with what we know will count for eternity, by doing that which we are called to
do. A simple choice, at least it should be. Too many times we take the easy
path, which will be easier on our flesh.
The
Apostle Paul had a mighty mission he had been apprehended for. The passion
burning in his heart kept him going when it would have been easy to stop, count
the harvest already accredited to his account, and call it done. But he didn’t.
“I've
been flogged five times with the Jews' thirty-nine lashes, beaten by Roman rods
three times, pummeled with rocks once. I've been shipwrecked three times, and
immersed in the open sea for a night and a day. In hard traveling year in and
year out, I've had to ford rivers, fend off robbers, struggle with friends,
struggle with foes.
I've been at risk in the city, at risk in the country,
endangered by desert sun and sea storm, and betrayed by those I thought were my
brothers. I've known drudgery and hard labor, many a long and lonely night
without sleep, many a missed meal, blasted by the cold, naked to the weather.
And
that's not the half of it, when you throw in the daily pressures and anxieties
of all the churches. When someone gets to the end of his rope, I feel the
desperation in my bones. When someone is duped into sin, an angry fire burns in
my gut.” (2 Cor. 11:24-29 THE MESSAGE)
In
no way am I comparing a 14 hour drive to what the apostle Paul had to endure to
fulfill his calling at times. We want to think so, though.
In
your ongoing walk with the Lord Jesus today, consider that price which He paid for
us. Receive encouragement from Him, from the other examples given to us throughout
Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation. Read about the martyrs who have gone
before us through the centuries, giving their lives for the eternal passion
instilled within them. Then we can find that which is necessary to continue
pressing on to the mark, to win the prize, to reach the final destination.
The
reward will be great.
Now think
on this.
Steve Martin
Founder
Love For His People. Inc.
P.S. It was a good time with family
those short Christmas days. Here are just two photos I took.
Lorraine Unzicker, Laurie and Ben
Christmas night at a Chinese restaurant on the way home.
The only place to get food that night when we stopped.
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