Day 6 – February 27th 2007
Ezra 5:6-17
It would be nice if there were only one round of setbacks in life. Then we’d just plow through it, knowing that peace and fruitfulness await us just around the corner. Many times, whether on bike trips or tennis courts I’ve presumed that ‘this hill is the last one’ or ‘that shot was a winner.’ But as in road trips, and tennis, life isn’t that simple. What we thought was a winning shot to settle the point set us resting, only to find our ‘winner’ returned back, whizzing past us as we’d stopped playing. And that last hill on the back trip? “Just kidding” nature says, as yet another summit climb is revealed on the horizon.
Make peace with this truth: As long as you’re breathing, another set-back, another trial, is just around the corner. What sets fruitful people apart from the rest? They have a capacity, like Haggai, and Zerubbabel, to keep going when things get tough. The book of Hebrews says it this way: “You have need of endurance.”
Indeed. We need it in relationships, especially in this age of disposable ones. We need it in the perfecting of our skills vocationally and professionally. We need it in our life with other believers, and in our life with God and the calling He gives us. Things don’t happen without intentionality and effort. But even then, those elements are only the start. What do we do when opposition arises? What do we do when it arises again and again?
Oh Lord, You know my weariness in the realm of _____. I’m tired of setbacks and difficulties. Give me your patience and wisdom, and most of all, give me the capacity for perseverance. May your strength be my sustenance in a real way in this realm. And grant us, as a community, the strength to press through every setback that would discourage from being about your purposes. Give us the humility to recognize the role we play in our own trials, and the courage to stay strong when tempted to quit. In the Name of the One who went the distance on our behalf… Amen
posted by Richard Dahlstrom @ 4:25 PM
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