Never Give Up!

Our reading is Luke 18:1, “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and never give up.”  The parable Jesus told was the parable of the persistent widow. At that time and place, widows were particularly vulnerable because pensions, government assistance and life insurance were not available to them. The only weapon this woman had in her arsenal was perseverance. In the end, the widow was rewarded for her perseverance and received justice. As with all parables there is only one point – the point of this parable is to persevere in the Christian journey. In the end, we will be rewarded for our perseverance too. Webster defines perseverance as: doing something despite difficulty or delay. We must never give up!

The word perseverance resonates in American society, because our society values persistence. It has been said many times that no one likes a quitter. We wonder about the couple who call off the marriage after a few months. We despise parents who abandon their children. We salute the retiree, who labored at the same job for decades. We marvel at the person who celebrates their one-hundredth birthday. We celebrate the couple on their gold wedding anniversary and admire the century home. We respect the farmer whose family has owned that land for generations. Many treasure a well-aged wine. Our society values things that take time. Why should the Christian life be any different?

Paul knew what Jesus knew during his earthly ministry, that there is power in perseverance because longevity has a way of changing us. Roman 5:3-5 says, “Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”  That was Paul’s story. He endured many hardships, but he remained faithful to Jesus. I led worship for decades. I was a true pastor; I knew my people and their problems. Some faced great challenges, yet they were in worship weekly. They refused to walk away from the faith. They would agree persistence is important because it does three things. Let me look at each one.

First, persistence transforms you! Life is not easy and many times we go to God with our problems and concerns. Those times with God are valuable because it is at those times we change. God is influencing your life, and you are becoming a better person. You become a kinder person. You become a more compassionate person. You become a more loving person. Are you a better person today than you were ten years ago? How much time do you spend with God? Spending time with God will transform you.

Christian writer Max Lucado (born 1955) admits he was a closet slob. Prior to being married, a messy home never bothered him. There was always a pile of old newspapers. There was always a pile of dirty dishes in the sink. The bed was never made. Everything changed when he got married. His wife, Denalyn (1956), liked a clean house. She forced him to pick up and he didn’t like it. For several years, he was in training then one day his wife announced she would be going away for a few days. He was going to miss her, but he looked forward to living like a slob again. He wasn’t going to clean or pick up things until the day before she returned. When she first left the mess began to build. It was at that moment something happened he didn’t expect. The mess began to bother him. He began to clean on his own. He was a reformed slob! His wife had changed him. The same thing happens when you spend time with God. Persistence has a way of transforming you. Never give up on the Christian journey!

Second, persistence humbles you! Looking back, there was a time in my life I was living the life of a fraud. I wanted to convey to the world my life was perfect. I was an independent thinker, who could provide for my own needs. Time taught me this simply wasn’t going to happen. I do my best to control the controllables, but there are many things in life that are out of my control. I am comfortable confessing; I am more dependent on God today than ever. I hope he is controlling my thoughts, and I know he is providing for my needs. Persistence humbles you.

In 1857, a woman by the name of Cassie Chadwick (1957-1907) was born in western Canada. At the age of 24, she moved to Cleveland, Ohio and began her career as a fraud. She always appeared to be someone she wasn’t and was excellent at it. She became famous. She defrauded several U.S. banks out of millions of dollars claiming to be the illegitimate daughter and heir of Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919). When she died at the age of fifty, she went by eight different names. Sometimes things aren’t what they appear. I hope that is not your story. How has life humbled you? Are you tired of living the life of a fraud? Persistence has a way of humbling you. Never give up on the Christian journey!

Third, persistence helps you to focus on God! Philippians 3:12 says, “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.”  Keeping Jesus, the focal point of your life, is not easy. Life is filled with many distractions. Some of those distractions are challenging circumstances, illness and natural disasters. How many of our distractions are good things – our relationships, jobs, and hobbies. Those are good things, but they are not the best things in life. The best thing in life is God. Hardships and troubles remind us we have a spiritual side. Perseverance helps you focus on God.

It is my experience that people do not return to church after years of being absent because of the music program or they want to make new friends. It is my experience personal crisis leads people back to church. It may be the loss of a loved one, a health challenge, a relationship issue, or they are facing a stressful life experience, like relocating, starting a new job, or retirement. Each returning worshipper wants a stronger connection with God and inner peace. Persistence helps us focus on God. Never give up on the Christian journey!

In 1972, NASA launched the exploratory space probe Pioneer 10. The satellite’s primary mission was to reach Jupiter, photograph the planet and its moons, and beam data to earth about Jupiter’s magnetic field, radiation belts, and atmosphere. Scientists feared the asteroid belt would destroy the satellite before it could reach its target. They had nothing to fear. Pioneer 10 accomplished its mission and much, much more. Swinging past the giant planet in November 1973, Jupiter’s immense gravity hurled Pioneer 10 at a higher rate of speed toward the edge of the solar system. At one billion miles from the sun, Pioneer 10 passed Saturn. At some two billion miles, it passed Uranus; Neptune at nearly three billion miles; Pluto at almost four billion miles. By 1997, twenty-five years after its launch, Pioneer 10 was more than six billion miles from the sun. And despite that immense distance, Pioneer 10 continued to beam back radio signals to scientists on Earth. The last radio communication with Pioneer 10 was on January 23, 2003. Pioneer 10 was designed to last 21 months, yet it lasted more than 30 years.

We remember the name Pioneer 10 for one reason – it is a story of perseverance. It never gave up. How will you be remembered? Will you be remembered as one who quit the Christian journey because life was hard? Or will you be remembered as one who persevered? Jesus told the disciples years ago what he expects from us today. We must never give up!