Endurance, Patience, Perseverance

I never quite know what I am getting into when I choose a word for the year. This year is no different. I chose endurance, knowing I needed to learn and practice it, but not knowing how much. I am not not sure I really knew what endurance meant, either. I thought it was staying power, standing fast and lasting through the hard times. I am learning that endurance truly means so much more.

As I have studied through Romans, I have learned more about endurance. In Romans 15:4, the King James Version [KJV] translates endurance, "patience." There are some nuances to the word that do quite equate with patience (Thayer, 2011), but there is a relationship, a relationship which connotes some waiting, waiting not just for the hardship to be over, as I have been doing, but waiting with hopes of good things on the other side. Believers are not promised good things in this world. The Bible promises trouble on earth (John 16:33). The Bible promises eternal life for believers in heaven, however, and that is worth hopefully enduring and waiting for.

Biblical endurance also has connotations of perseverance. Again, the KJV translates the word endurance in the English Standard Version [ESV] translation of Hebrews 12:1. The New International Version translates the same word perseverance. What is the difference between the two? According to Difference Between (2015), "endurance is experiencing or surviving pain or hardship," while "perseverance refers to continuing in spite of difficulty and lack of success." So endurance means staying, while perseverance means forward motion. The Bible as a whole commands us to do both.

Endurance requires stamina (Merriam-Webster, n.d.). But how do I endure biblically, in a way that honors and glorifies God? That is another matter. From a recent sermon, I learned that God-honoring endurance means running well (Walters, 2021). Endurance means looking for the joy, and not just seeing the hardship. Endurance also requires perspective, something I think I often lack when trying to stand my ground.

God is enlarging my view of what it means to endure this year. His plans are always so much greater than mine. So may I, by his power, endure. May I practice patience. May I persevere. May I have the perspective that this is all for the greater good of God's glory, because when it comes to endurance, only God endures forever.

References:

Hasa. (2015, October 17). In Differencebetween.com. Retrieved from https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-endurance-and-vs-perseverance/

Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Endurance. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved October 11, 2021 from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/endurance

Strong, J. (1890). G5281-hypomone. In Strong's exhaustive concordance of the Bible. [e-book edition]. Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5281/kjv/tr/0-1/

Thayer, J. H. (2011). Strong's NT 5281. In Thayer's Greek Lexicon. [electronic database.] Retrieved from https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g5281/kjv/tr/0-1/.

Walters, W. (2021, July 25). Embrace the race. Retrieved from https://willowhills.church/series/stand-alone-sermons.

Reigniting Desire to Read God’s Word

I resolved this year to read my Bible, and to actually read it, not just listen to it. (Listening to the Bible is good, but what I believe I had started to default to out of laziness.) I tried to keep reading my Bible in the mornings, but I felt rushed and unfocused. I read my Bible a few evenings, on the premise that I had morning activities that might prevent or delay reading and you know what? It helped me get more interested and invested in reading.

I have been keeping a mental tally lately of things that motivate me to read God's word. I am thankful for this season of renewed fervor, yet know that I will mostly likely fall into struggle again. With that in mind, and with the recognition that others might struggle to read their Bibles, too, I thought I would share my current list of things that have in the past, or in the present or the future help might  reignite my desire to read:

1) Pick a new time of day. Brain function varies due to different demands. Life circumstances can also help make readings more or less difficult. Switching up reading times can help!

2) Choose a new translation. The western world is beyond blessed to have so many Bible translations available. Read a new one and see if it helps with re-engagement. 

*Caveat: Make sure to read a translation that is accurate. Paraphrases are good, but can assume a lot. Therefore, I try to read something translated from the Bible's original languages.

3) Find a new way to read. Try reading from a different book, or from an electronic device such as a phone or tablet. 

*Note, as pointed out in a recent episode of the Let's Talk podcast, people may not know a person reading on a device is reading the Bible, so if the person wants to make their spiritual discipline clear (e.g. to children or other viewers), reading a paper Bible might be best .

4) Journal. Writing by hand forces the two hemispheres of the brain to work together, resulting in more insights and deeper learning. Kinesthetic learners might find that journaling helps them recall the material read better, too.

5) Get accountable. A dear friend (who I hope reads this post) and I started swapping insights from our readings via text and e-mail. This helps us see new things, and it keeps us accountable for doing our readings, because we need to do so in order to have something to share.

The speakers in the Let's Talk podcast (linked above) stated that the goal if spiritual disciplines is a a soul that works right. The purpose of setting up spiritual disciplines is to create a pattern of life, not pursue perfection. If I am making it without my spiritual disciplines, I should be looking out for idols in my life, because really, I am made to feed on the Word of God.

Those are all my tips, my ways to reignite desire for reading God's word. I hope they work. I hope the Spirit works. He is the one who really is in charge of igniting a passion to seek after God through reading His Word after all. Practicing the spiritual discipline of reading God's word is really just making room for Him to work, and inviting him into life to do so.

Endurance: My Word for 2021

Whew! Twenty-twenty was a year, wasn't it? And although we have turned the page on the calendar, it isn't over yet? What do I mean by that? Well, COVID-19 defined much of what was 2020: social distancing, quarantine, isolation, illness, death, new rhythms of life and work, etc. And COVID-19 isn't gone. It won't ever be gone, but perhaps in the future, less prominent? I sure hope so! So with that sentiment, I begin 2021 with the word endurance.

My word for 2020 was faithful. I wanted to be faithful to my work, my husband, and my faith (not necessarily in that order). Boy, did the year give me a run for my money! I'm not sure I succeeded in being faithful, but I sure tried. And trying it what I want to do in 2021, but maybe with a little more stamina.

I haven't always been a word person. I stole the idea from a dear cousin years ago. My word for that first year was joy, and I kept a journal noting every time I saw the word or experienced it. I don't journal so religiously these days, and sometimes I even forget my word for the year, but usually, it's helpful.

The word endurance came to me on a morning walk one day. Lamenting the struggles of 2020, I wasn't planning to choose a new word, but then the Holy Spirit impressed this one on me. I don't want to ignore it.

Verses help me found my conception of my word for the year, so a few for the word endurance are:

"Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses" (1 Timothy 6:12, New International Version).

"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).

How do I want to practice endurance?

In my work: By finding new ways to be faithful to my tasks and make my job sustainable.

In my home life: By seeking out ways to not just survive, but thrive amidst all the to-dos.

In my running: To both build endurance and find practices that help me make running sustainable for the long run.

In my marriage: By continuing old practices and by instituting new ones to help our commitment stand the test of time.

In my faith: To not grow weary in doing good, but to keep up spiritual disciplines and to trust God when it's hard, especially when it's hard.

Endurance. That's my word. That's my prayer for 2021. May God grant it to me should it be His will.

The Bucket List Project

I don't make New Year's Resolutions, at least not the rigid, "I will do this thing every day for the whole year," type of resolutions. I make lists of things I want to do, like I did in 2016, or set small monthly goals like I did with this year's yoga challenges. I want to have reasonable and attainable goals, if I even call them that. Maybe I should call them intentions.

My overall goal for 2017 was to pursue passion and find purpose. I wrote a little bit about that, but let's be honest, it came late in the year. For most of the year, I struggled. When I changed jobs, I realized that I'd been faking life for most of the year and hadn't really been present or truly living. That epiphany brought with it a wave of self-discovery and honestly, a lot of struggle and pain. I don't have a bad life, but there are certainly parts of life that are very hard. I wasn't quite ready for the overwhelming feelings that came with real living and lost some of my pursuit of what mattered in the process.

I am turning 30 this year. Realizing that I'm growing older by the year, I've decided to try a different approach for living in 2018. I'm constructing a bucket list. 

When I think of bucket lists, I think of Second-Hand Lions and doing what I want to do in my latter years, or at just the last minute before I die. I don't want to live like that. I want to live as many moments as I can being intentional, and present, and purposeful. Having a life's end list makes me want to put things off that I could do now. I considered a reverse bucket list for 2018, but decided against it, too. Yes, I want to be grateful, but a reverse bucket list is about what's been done. I want to focus on doing things now. 

So for 2018, I've made myself a list of 30+ things I want to do this 30th year of my life, and with my fellow JoySquad member @717jr decided to embark on the #bucketlistproject. This is a project to try to focus on doing things that matter to us now instead of later. It's a project about being intentional and taking advantage of the moments we have.

Want to join us in this project? Tag your Facebook or Instagram posts with #bucketlistproject so we can share each in other's joys. Link up with this blog by posting about your bucket list projects in the comments section. Let's seize the day today instead of waiting until tomorrow.