Life is meant to be lived in community.  Together we strengthen and support one another.  We share joys and we share sorrows.  Life comes with difficult experiences and pain.  Becoming a Christian doesn’t bless us out of hardship.  Instead, God equips us in order to deal with it.  You’ll notice a theme of persistence, endurance, and perseverance as you read through the Bible.  All of the apostles dealt with persecution and hardship.  Many times, fellow believers came to their assistance and tended to their needs. 

Just yesterday I spoke with dear friends who have been out of state for cancer treatments.  They shared stories of a few people who were strangers to them, but brothers and sisters in Christ.  These people came alongside and ministered to their needs.  Their support was nothing major.  They took them grocery shopping or gave them a ride.  It’s these simple acts of kindness that make deep impressions.

I remember one particular time when my family was going through significant difficulty.  One of my friends brought us dinner.  She knew we were struggling and felt that she could support us in a tangible way by bringing us dinner.   It was a simple thing to her.  That meal not only lifted stress from my shoulders, but it also clearly demonstrated that I was not alone.  I was brought to tears by her act of support. 

Times of hardship require perseverance.  Perseverance is highly-regarded in the Bible.  It is a characteristic that God wants to develop within us.  Sometimes it takes help to be successful in perseverance.  Moses provides a great example of this in Exodus 17. 

The Israelites were being attacked by the Amalekites.  Moses went up on a hill and as long as he kept his hands lifted, the Israelites made progress in battle.  However, if he lowered his hands, the Amalekites began to win.  Well, if you’ve ever held your arms up for any length of time, you know they get heavy.  Thankfully, Moses didn’t go up on that hill alone.  He had backup, Aaron and Hur.  Now it wasn’t Aaron or Hur’s job to hold up their hands.  That could only be Moses.  But Aaron and Hur supported Moses through his task so that he and the Israelites could be successful.  They got a stone for Moses to sit on and they held up Moses’ hands.  When Moses lost strength, they became his strength.

Sometimes it takes help and other times we have to go the final span on our own.  This was true for Jesus in the garden before He was betrayed.  He had His most trusted friends with Him.  But friends can only go so far with us on our journey.  After all, it is our journey, not theirs.  Jesus went a few steps beyond and prayed His heart out.  It was a time of deep turmoil that could only be experienced between Him and God. 

We see perseverance in both of these Biblical examples.  Sure, Moses was tired.  He didn’t have the strength to raise his hands or even stand, but did he quit?  No!  He didn’t give in.  He did what he could do with all his might.  Jesus didn’t walk away either.  He knew what was coming and He chose to stay and to suffer – for us.  Christ knows what it means to persevere.  And because He persevered, He can give us the ability to do the same.

In looking at these examples, it appears that the first step to perseverance is being in community.  We need to be in relationship with fellow believers.  It is critical.  Our family in Christ may not be able to go the distance with us, but they can provide support and lift us up in prayer.

No doubt you know someone who is going through a difficult time.  Be in persistent prayer for them and be sensitive to God’s direction.  God may call you to support them in some way.  Don’t ignore the call, but follow through.  It may be a simple task for you, but a huge blessing for them.  Let us choose to be each other’s strength, enabling one another to succeed and persevere.

Please share your thoughts and experiences in a comment below!

Scriptures for this week:
Exodus 17:6-16
Philippians 4:10-19
James 1:2-12
Hebrews 12:1-3
Ephesians 6:10-20 (*v13)

Originally posted July 29, 2019