Him-Powering
Perseverance (Part One)
By Karen D’Amore
I can do all
things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philippians 4:13 (NIV)
With a daunting forecast of 9
degrees and a windchill of -28, the thought of running a five-mile race in the
frigid temperatures was perplexing. In spite of several viable excuses to
forego the race, something inside of
me was insistent. Chilled to the bone and my enthusiasm rapidly waning, I
approached the start line with a lump of reluctance in my throat. After mile
one, I questioned my sanity! By mile two…icicles dripped from my eyelashes…and
my feet were frozen numb. Limping into mile three with a gnawing temptation to
quit, I was startled when my music quite unexpectedly turned on; the worship
song became a timely reinforcement:
“So I pray…God I need You more than words can say…Right here in
this moment…
You know my need…I’m gonna pray.” [1]
PRAY!!! With discouraging obstacles
consuming my focus, I had been too distracted to consider praying.
As I recalled Philippians 4:13 and
prayed for the “Son” to thaw my frozen feet, I was overcome with a rush of
warmth and feeling in my feet was restored. By mile four, I was cruising
joyfully on praise music and prayers, until I was forced to dig deeper into my
perseverance-pockets and trudge up a steep incline nearing the finish line. While
emitting an exasperating “Ugh,” I contemplated the parallels between the race course
impediments, and those challenges we encounter along the course of life.
For me, my finish-line victory
resonated with perseverance: being steadfast
in doing something despite the difficulty. [2] The challenging hurdles along the
twisting, turning course certainly symbolized how difficult, dangerous, debilitating
and discouraging life can often be. When I fixated on those uncomfortable
challenges, I wanted to quit the race! But when God supernaturally intervened,
nudging me to pray and draw strength from Him…He empowered me with everything
necessary to press on to the finish.
Later, from the warmth of my
comfortable couch, I pondered the Greek translation of perseverance which means
“to remain under.” I remained under those miserable conditions for the duration
of the race. And, while attempting to endure them in my own strength, I was
defeated. As God reinforced the importance of utter dependence on Him, I
learned that when we God-up…instead of give-up…God will show up! Scripture informs us that in this life, we will face trials and troubles. However,
God never intended for us to tackle them in our own strength. [3]
When you encounter those difficult
obstacles along the course of life, never give up…but instead God-up…and
experience Him-powering perseverance!
GOING
DEEPER:
1. What difficulties are weighing
you down? Who/what is your power source?
FURTHER
READING:
Married to Dan, Karen, a retired
police officer, currently works as a Manicurist at Craig Berns Salon and as an
instructor in the Cosmetology Department at WCTC. Karen also serves on the
Welcoming Team at Oakwood.
[1]
Sanctus Real. “Pray.” Run, Birdwing Music, 2013. Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=a_J4I4gsvYA
[3] John 16:33
