Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Is This You?


He failed in business in ’32.

He ran as a state legislator and lost in ’32.

He tried business again in ’33 and failed again.

His sweetheart died in ’35.

He had a nervous breakdown in ’41.

He was defeated for the nomination to Congress in’43.

He was defeated again for Congress in’48.

He was defeated when he ran for the Senate in ’55.

He was defeated for the vice presidency of the United States in ’56.

He ran again for Senate in ’58 and lost.

Who is he?

Most of us would have kept going after the first failure. A group of us might have gone on even after the third, fourth, and fifth defeat. Very few individuals would keep going after the eighth or ninth. Where would you have stopped if this had been your life’s path?

Perseverance is defined as "determined continuation with something; steady and continued action or belief, usually over a long period and especially despite difficulties or setbacks." Have you heard the saying, “Keeping the faith?" Another way to word it is “not giving up regardless of what may happen.” It takes faith to persevere.

The individual’s life listed above had to have faith in something in order to keep going. Was his faith in himself or in something bigger? Could it have been his faith in believing that he had a destiny? I don’t know. But I do wonder what keeps a person going in the face of set-backs, failures, and defeats. What do you have faith in that keeps you on your path?

Philippians 3:13, in the New King James Version, says, “Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead . . . “ Let’s look more closely at that statement. “Apprehended” is another way of saying to grasp. The Greek word used here is active. This isn’t just a one-time grab. It's active, and it means to seize or clutch, to clasp or embrace. Likewise, the apostle's statement, “But one thing I do," shows specific concentration and focus. As Goethe said, “When all is said, the greatest art is to limit and isolate oneself.” In the next phrase, “Forgetting those things which are behind,” we see a reminder that regardless of whether an experience is good, bad, or neutral, we should leave it behind and continually strive, or “reach forward.” Stretching forward evokes a mental picture of a runner leaning and reaching forward as he seeks to finish the race. It involves using every muscle in your body to achieve your goal; straining with your last ounce of energy.

Philippians 3:14 continues: “I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” I am pushing and crowding forward to reach the goal or cross the finish line with a prize in mind. Here is our motivation -- Jesus himself, whom we must continually focus upon as we run this race. The Greek for “high calling” literally means that we are to strive for the prize “of the upward calling.” “The goal continually moves forward as we press on, but yet it is never out of sight,” states Robertson's Word Pictures of the New Testament.

Hebrews 12:2 from The Message says it this way: “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.”

May God give you that extra measure of perseverance when you need it so you can keep on keeping on the path He has you walking.

Now, can you guess who the person is with all the defeats listed at the beginning? Do you want to know if he kept going and never gave up? Well, I think you'll agree that he never quit. He kept trying until the very last.

In 1860, Abraham Lincoln was elected President of the United States.
Don’t you give up, either!

"Let me tell you the secret that has led me to my goal.
My strength lies solely in my tenacity."
~ Louis Pasteur