Endurance

Working out in the gym is worth the results…but very rarely do I WANT to do it. It’s never easy, I have to push harder than my body wants to, it hurts, & it tears my muscles. But if I continue to push through the pain, my body will start to build those muscles back stronger than they once were. It will learn to endure, to build stamina & strength… That’s the exact same way God works in us.

Psalm 84:5-7

⁵ Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
    whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
⁶ As they pass through the Valley of Baka,
    they make it a place of springs;
    the autumn rains also cover it with pools.^[a]
7 They go from strength to strength,
    till each appears before God in Zion.

He puts us in situations that we don’t necessarily like, that we are not good at, and we decide to label it as a weakness. So we usually push it to the side & focus on our strengths. But if we press on through that “weakness” we are able to see God work in us. He starts to tear us down & then gradually builds us back up stronger than before, so that not only are we able to do what we once couldn’t, but we also gain trust in Him for when the next challenge occurs, knowing that with Him all things are possible.  He builds in us a strong spirit.

Without Him…I am nothing, BUT Phil 4:13- says “WITH HIM I can do all things because He gives me the strength I need.”

 James 1:2 says

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds”

Learn to enjoy these challenges because this is when you are becoming more like Jesus.

Whatever challenges you face this week, change your perspective & start to perceive it as a way of growing, as a way of becoming more like Christ.

God chose YOU to live the life that you live because He knew YOU could manage it better than anybody else. He believes in you.

Believe Him, trust Him, obey Him… because then you have found favor, and recognize it as just that.