(3) we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;4and perseverance, character; and character, hope.5Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
We acknowledge that God is working in our lives. And, even when we encounter difficulty, that is not an occasion to give up or an excuse to try to work it out ourselves. If we don't turn to God in our times of trial, to whom will we turn? We might try to work things out according to our own human wisdom or strength, but our own power is imperfect and comparatively frail, but God's strength is perfect, and is displayed through our weakness. When we are weak or encounter failure, it is in those dark times in which we have an opportunity to see the power of God manifested. He doesn't want us to give up - He is faithful and will change our circumstances or change us in the midst of them.
The Holy Spirit will build endurance into our lives as we develop a mindset of never giving up. Here's what Hebrews 10 has to say:
35Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward.36For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:37"For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry.38Now the just shall live by faith...
She had tried to complete the task before, 4 times in fact, and she never let go of the dream. And Monday afternoon, endurance swimmer Diana Nyad successfully made the swim from Cuba to the Florida Keys - the first time ever someone had done it without a shark cage.
Diana told CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta: "It's all authentic. It's a great story. You have a dream 35 years ago -- doesn't come to fruition, but you move on with life. But it's somewhere back there. Then you turn 60, and your mom just dies, and you're looking for something. And the dream comes waking out of your imagination..."
After she completed the 100-mile swim in just under 53 hours, with swollen and sunburned face, she met with reporters with relayed three messages: "One is we should never, ever give up. Two is you never are too old to chase your dreams. Three is it looks like a solitary sport, but it's a team..."
She first started trying to cross the Florida Straits in 1978. As CNN reported, the first four tries were marked by gut-wrenching setbacks; if the rough, strength-sapping seas didn't force her to quit, an hours-long asthma attack or paralyzing and excruciating jellyfish stings did. For this swim, she wore a suit to protect her against jellyfish and a special mask to prevent jellyfish stings to the tongue, which derailed last year's attempt.
Nyad told Dr. Gupta that she hopes she can serve as some sort of inspiration. She said, "I think that a lot of people in our country have gotten depressed, pinned in, pinned down with living lives they don't want." She continued: "I do write all the time about -- you tell me what your dreams are. What are you chasing? It's not impossible. Name it."
Diana's story can provide a springboard to begin to think about the Biblical concept of endurance. She didn't wake up one morning and say, "I'm going to swim from Havana to Key West". This was a dream that she had pursued all her life, and even though she had what would be considered 4 failures, she continued to persevere. And, while her driving concepts may or may not have been inspired by faith, they are certainly consistent with God's Word. Her theme became, "find a way". And, for the believer, we can continue to meditate on God's ability to find a way for us when it seems there is no way. He specializes in the impossible, and as we continue to approach Him with expectation and with a trust in His supernatural power, we recognize that He will bring His will to pass in our lives.
So, the word for us, as we are energized by our faith in Christ is to never give up. Endurance comes as we encounter setbacks, but nevertheless we continue to try to move forward. If God has placed a dream on your heart, it may not come overnight or in the timing in which we think it should, but we can put our trust in a never-failing God, who may refine that dream - and refine us in the process - but if He has called something to take place in our lives, then we can know that He is faithful and will bring it to pass, in His time and His way. And, one further note - Diana Nyad said it was a team effort - she had a trainer, she had people that went with her to provide food for her and divers to go ahead of her to ward off the jellyfish. In our pursuit of God's best for us, we recognize that He will provide resources, including human ones, that will help to enable us to accomplish what He would ordain.
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