The Faith to Persevere

Mea e 'ai e tatau ma le aso
“Because you have kept My command to persevere ” (Revelation 3:10).

Perseverance means more than endurance—more than holding on until the end. A saint’s life is in the hands of God like a bow and arrow in the hands of an archer. God is aiming at something the saint cannot see, but our Lord continues to stretch and strain, and every once in a while the saint says, “I can’t take any more.”

Yet God pays no attention; He goes on stretching until His purpose is in sight, and then He lets the arrow fly.  Entrust yourself to God’s hands. Is there something in your life for which you need perseverance right now?  Maintain your intimate relationship with Jesus Christ through the perseverance of faith.

Proclaim as Job did, “Though He slay me, yet will I trust Him” (Job 13:15).
Faith is not some weak, pitiful emotion, but is strong and solid confidence built on the fact that God is love.

And even though you cannot see Him right now and cannot understand what He is doing, you know Him.  Disaster occurs in your life when you lack the mental composure that comes from establishing yourself on the eternal truth that God is love.

Faith is the supreme effort of your life—throwing yourself with surety and total confidence upon God.
God gave His all in Jesus Christ to save us, and now He wants us to give our all with total confidence in Him.

There are parts in our lives where that faith has not worked in us yet—places still untouched by the life of Jesus. There were none of those places in Jesus Christ’s life, and there are to be none in ours. Jesus prayed, “This is eternal life, that they may know You ” (John 17:3).

The real meaning of eternal life is a life that can face anything without wavering.  If we will take this view, life will become a great romance—a glorious opportunity of seeing wonderful beauty all the time.  God is disciplining us to get us into this central place of power.

Ia manuia,

failauga p. anoa'i