Endurance—Don’t Quit!!

Endurance—Don’t Quit!

Endurance has been on my mind a lot lately.  Mainly, because I see so many people quitting.  People are quitting church, giving up pastoring or leading, and even dropping out of their spiritual life altogether.  Why?  Because it got hard.  Satan’s attacks were relentless or just overwhelming—they were too hard to endure.  

How do we build endurance?   How do we finish well?  How do we complete the race we’re in?  Maybe the first question to ask is, “What race are we in?” And the second is, “What is endurance?”

Hebrews 12:1 says this, “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.”  We’re in a race of life. God has called us and equipped us for our own unique race—a race, a life of completely obeying God and telling the world about Him.  Satan has set traps all along the way to try to trip us up!  He entices us with sin which will stop our race.  But God is our coach and is training us to endure, overcome, and finish well.  He’s building our spiritual muscles and our lung capacity by overcoming one obstacle after another—each one becoming bigger and harder.  If we don’t understand the race we’re in and how God is training us, we’ll give up easily. God describes endurance as perseverance, to bear ill treatment bravely and calmly, to not run away, to remain and abide.  

As I thought on my own race, I came up with some ways God has trained me.  Let me share them.  I’m sure you’ll recognize them from your own training.  

1. You’ve got to be passionate about the race to endure. Mostly, be passionate about God and running (living) for Him. 
2. You have to embrace training.  
3. You have to focus. 
4. You have to drown out or ignore the discouraging voices.  
5. Keep the finish line in sight.  
6. Pace yourself.  
7. Listen to those cheering you on.  Surround yourself with encouragers and like-minded runners.  
8. Listen to your coach. (Be in the Word!) Remember his training as you run.  
9. Help others who may stumble before they finish.
10. Be alert.  You have an enemy trying to stop you.  
11. Don’t run with weights (sin). Throw them off!
12. Cross the finish line with everything you’ve got!!

“Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!”

Hebrews 12:1-2 (Message)