176: Endurance: How am I Going to Make It?

176: Endurance: How am I Going to Make It?

Reference: Hebrews 12

Let's walk the road of faithful endurance. We are not the first to be here. We have many examples to follow.

Takeaways from Hebrews 12:

* Keep your eyes On Jesus

* See Jesus’ example of endurance- the cross, shame, persecution

* Don’t feel sorry for yourself- keep going

* Use this time as a learning time- what is God trying to teach you?

* Move forward! Don’t become stuck- look to Jesus as your guide.

* Find someone to walk this path with you- don’t go alone.

Four keys to success:

1. Gratitude - To “endure” means to just hold on, to keep things steady until you reach the other side. But endurance for the Christian is not without gratitude; indeed, it must not be so, for a life without gratitude is a life lived in disobedience. The command here is not to give thanks FOR everything, but to give thanks IN everything.

2. Contentment - The temptation during a season of endurance is to spend your days wishing for things to be different, or remembering the days when things were. So we drift into self-pity, pining away for what might be and continually trying to escape what actually is. For the Christian, though, a season of endurance is an opportunity to grow in the virtue of contentment.

3. Faith - A season of endurance doesn’t feel good. In fact, it feels very bad. It’s painful because we live with a daily sense of loss and longing and the temptation is to lapse into self-pity. But the Christian isn’t ruled by feelings; we are ruled by Jesus. So we must, during a season of endurance, let faith – not feelings – take the lead.

4. Focus - In a season like this, we are all tempted to turn inward - to take care of ourselves, to be all by ourselves, and to focus on our own opinions. But for the Christian, our focus should be different. Our eyes should be fixed on a different place. And ironically, our focus is really the most practical way we can continue to endure.

How do you endure? Fix your eyes on Jesus. Focus on Him, and you’ll keep going.

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