Because you have kept My command to persevere . . . —Revelation 3:10
Perseverance means more than endurance— more than simply 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 and pitiful emotion, but is strong and vigorous confidence built on the fact that God is holy 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 holy love. Faith is the supreme effort of your life— throwing yourself with abandon and total confidence upon God.
God ventured His all in Jesus Christ to save us, and now He wants us to venture our all with total abandoned confidence in Him. There are areas in our lives where that faith has not worked in us as yet— places still untouched by the life of God. 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 it has to face without wavering. If we will take this view, life will become one great romance— a glorious opportunity of seeing wonderful things all the time. God is disciplining us to get us into this central place of power.
Journal DJR
Good morning, Lord. It is so true … “There are areas in our lives where that faith has not worked in us as yet” The places where faith works are beautiful … and the ones where it hasn’t are painfully not so beautiful. More metaphors from the woodshop: The beautiful grain in wood comes in areas where the tree experiences the most strain, near the roots, at branch intersections etc, where the tree is buffeted by the natural forces of winds and weather. A tree has no problem when the trunk is growing straight (same with us) But to branch off and cast a bigger shadow into a new direction and face the wind and storms … that tests the tree (and us) And it creates a greater beauty in wood and in humans. So, I’m not asking for storms in my life … but I see your logic in allowing them. And ultimately agree that you know best. Help me get along the way toward that Christlikness that you describe in John 17 “This is eternal life, that they may know You . . .” (John 17:3) Once again, we see that knowing you is the answer to all of our problems. Thank You for your sacrifice and the offer to come and know you. And the lessons from the woodshop.
A recent bowl reclaimed from a downed Maple tree showing the stress induced figure and shimmering "chatoyance" which only happens near crotches, bends and other areas of increased stress.
Click Image for John White's Original Vision For CO2's
