Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. -Hebrews 12:1

     What promises do you make to a man trapped under a crane? To a patient who's been told they have cancer? To a parent whose child is fighting for their life? A couple whose farm is at risk? "When will God show up?" they ask. "What if He doesn't?" they continue, their eyes pleading for reassurance or guarantees.

     What do you say to a worker whose home has been taken? To the man who just lost his company? To the woman who just lost her job? To a mother whose baby dies despite her pleas to God? "Why didn't God show up?" some ask. "What was He thinking!" others cry out.

     We hear a lot of talk in the body of Christ about victorious living. Christians are taught the myth---on one end of the spectrum---that God wants them to be wealthy, healthy and happy. On the other end of the spectrum, however, Christians are also taught they're supposed to find a way to be happy in the midst of trial; to celebrate in the middle of turmoil. This, too, is a myth.

     These teachings are incredibly hurtful to Christians struggling to plant one foot in front of the other. Prosperity gospels make Christians who are poor or hurting think there's something wrong with their faith, or that God is less satisfied with their efforts. Grin-and-bear-it gospels add false guilt to already worn-down believers, leading them to think God is disappointed they can't suck it up and smile in the face of adversity.

     These false gospels cause people to lose hope, often when hope is all they have left. Neither God nor Jesus ever promises this life will be without trial; and neither ever teaches a grin-and-bear-it mantra. 

     In place of these two myths, Scripture teaches these two truths: Perseverance and endurance.

     Perseverance is easily translated: Hold on! Be steadfast! It is a decision not to give up hope, not to turn our back on faith, and it's a decision that can only be made by the person facing the circumstances, though friends and family (usually) and the Holy Spirit (always) stand ready to     help.

     Perseverance is the act of fixing our eyes on the finish line; endurance is getting up when we get knocked down while moving to that place our eyes are fixed on.

     Rarely are the lines from trial to triumph marked by straight lines; more often they are zigzags and loops---along trails littered with our tears---over obstacles that mark us with bruises, scratches and scars as we nevertheless press on.

     When the Apostle Paul challenges us to be content or James tells us to count trials as joy, they're talking about the quality of our trust in the Father's ultimate promises, not immediate release or relief. Even the oft-quoted and abused Jeremiah passage ("I know the plans I have for you-") were promises it would take another seventy years to keep, long after many of the hearers were gone.

     If you're in the midst of trials right now, know this: God's heart is breaking with you. Having watched Jesus---though completely innocent of any wrongdoing---suffer and die, He understands our pain---all of it. His decisions to act; or not to act; to heal or not to heal; to intervene or not to intervene, are based on a perspective we cannot explain nor comprehend, so we must choose to trust Him when He promises to one day redeem even our deepest hurts.

     His message to us is to hold on, for He will return again. When He does,He will gather His children, the weak and the strong, the suffering and the striving, the joyful and the tearful...all of them; He will gather them up---and in that moment His full healing begins."

     Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.---Hebrews 12:2-3