Perseverance seems to be a bit of a buzzword in my life right now. Deep down in my soul is an “echo” of the word as I struggle to meet the daily demands of life.
Even at church, the topic mysteriously landed on my lap. I occasionally get asked to share a message and we’ve been going through the Sermon On The Mount found in Mathew 5,6 & 7. Lo and behold, I got asked to share on Mat 7:7-11 - which again talks about perseverance. The audio of my message can be found below.
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And then again tonight as I was checking out some video’s on YouTube, I come across this little beauty by John Piper. Too often, we choose the path of least resistance in our lives - and this also creeps into our faith. As a result, faith gets shipwrecked and the hope in God fades away.
When the going gets tough, the tough should get going to God - He is the One that can sustain and deliver us from any obstacle life throws at us. And if He doesn’t want us to survive that obstacle, He will be there side by side - accompanying us all the way.
I can almost imagine Him looking at the tears streaming down our faces as we face our obstacles and saying to Himself, “in My Kingdom, these tears I will personally wipe away,” - just learn to trust Me.
So in my soul, I’m beginning to thank God for the current hard times because He is teaching me an attribute worth it’s weight in gold - perseverance. Check out Piper’s video below and I hope you are encouraged by it.
Thank you for that Piper vid. Though I am an A/G minister here in the U.S., I am quite Calvinistic and I love the way Piper handles Scripture - with respect, reverence and thoughtfulness.
Hi Blaine - thanks for stopping by. With you saying A/G, does that mean Assembly of God? If so, I’d be interested to know which line of thinking AOG churches take. IE, are they more Calvanistic or Armenian or whatever?
Hi mate,
So few words yet filled with such powerful truth. I love the way Piper articulates the sermon and draws us into a deeper revelation of God’s transforming Word. It really is a matter of how we see God and whether or not He has the capacity or will to keep us. To lose one’s salvation is not a matter of how weak we see ourselves, but how powerfully we see God. If He said He will lose none that belong to Him, then I must believe that He also has the means to keep me with Him. Despite moments of sin, His love and power are even greater than those. I am redeemed, saved, called and kept by my Jesus. Without Him I am dead!
Keep on living it,
Pastor Mark.
Well said Mark! Glad you enjoyed the clip, check out all his video’s on YouTube here:
http://www.youtube.com/profile_play_list?user=DGJohnPiper
And bi jingo crikey! First you’re on Facebook and now you’re commenting on my blog! U becoming a geek like me or something!