Perseverance is a chorus of praise to God’s amazing grace! Persevere – there is a rich reward awaiting you.
People often ask me, “Joni, how can I pray for you personally?”
Well, hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and I could answer that question with, well, okay, pray that the Gospel will enjoy great success through my efforts; pray that God will give me great wisdom in leading Joni and Friends and our global ministry among people with disabilities. But answers like that are almost a given. Of course, I would love for God to keep me strong for the task to which he’s called me. I mean, I’m a great example of Acts 20:24 where it says, “I consider my life worth nothing to me except that I might finish the race and complete the task that God has given me – that is, the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace.” But most people who ask how they can pray for me are actually looking for something more “personal.” They’ll say, “no, no, how can I pray for you in a personal way?”
Well, I think they ask that because they seem to know, they understand, they can see that my disability is hard, and it’s getting harder. And so, let’s say when visitors to our Joni and Friends headquarters stop by my office to say “hi,” and they ask how they can pray for me, I will smile, look up from my wheelchair, and I’ll say, “Please ask God to give me perseverance.” Oh, my goodness, what a great character quality, right? To be able to persevere through suffering. Wilbern Best said that "Perseverance is a doxology to God's preservation [of his people]." Now, let me paraphrase that, because it’s so important: when you persevere, your life is a glorious doxology – it becomes a symbol of praise to God for the way he preserves your life, for the way he keeps you keeping on! And when we persevere through hard times, our lives become a breathtaking doxology to God and his faithful, grace-filled preservation of his people. We will not cave in. We will not shrink back. We will not be destroyed. We won’t recant. We will persevere.
You know, to persevere through great hardship honors God; it glorifies him for preserving his people through the worst of times. And James 1 says to, "Count it all joy then… when you meet trials of various kinds for you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance." Notice that we don't count the trials as joyful; we count it joyful when trials come, for they signal, “aha! God thinks it's time to strengthen your faith and to make you more steadfast in him! So, Joni, persevere. Your suffering’s not useless. Your perseverance is honoring God!”
And then, don’t forget another verse in James 1. Verse 12 comes with a glorious reward. It says, “Blessed [that is, happy] is the man who perseveres under trial for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life to them who love him.” Oh, friend, perseverance comes with great blessing, great delight in the Lord, great happiness in him - and, boy, do I sure experience that! Plus, if we would but persevere and keep holding fast to Jesus through pain, or disappointment, if we would but persevere without complaint, there is a rich reward awaiting us. Finally, persevere, friend! For there is a far greater gain than having your suffering removed, and that gain is knowing Jesus Christ better. If Job had had less trials, he would have known less of his God. So, persevere. For as you do, you are a chorus of praise to God’s amazing grace. Go today to joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends