Date: January 13, 2010 10:21 PM
Topic: +DEV+ Learning Persistence
Learning Persistence
“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” (James 1:2-3)
Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 38:6-13
Some ants built their hills on a sidewalk. In each hill were many grains of sand carried by those tiny ants from a sand pile a block away. People walking on the sidewalk stepped on the anthills and smashed them. Day after day the persistent ants brought more sand and rebuilt the hills.
God’s people were persistent—in walking their own paths. Prophets, such as Jeremiah, gave them God’s instruction. He spoke to the stubborn Israelites, “Return to the Lord. Confess your sins and seek His forgiveness. He will have mercy on you” (see Jeremiah 3:12). Sometimes they laughed at him. Other times they just turned away. Finally they put Jeremiah in prison. He was discouraged, but refused to give up. He believed God, even if the Israelites didn’t. And God took care of Jeremiah, even when he was trapped in a cistern.
God asks us to trust Him, even when things don’t turn out the way we want. He will give us the strength to persist. If we listen and obey, as Jeremiah did, God will be in charge of the results.
Insight: Don’t get tired of serving God and doing good. Persist in obeying Him, no matter what happens—or doesn’t happen.
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