Getting Through Tough Times

[This article is part of the “spiritual leadership today” study/discussion going on this year. For all articles in the series, click the Spiritual Leadership tab at the top of the page. To have them delivered, subscribe to The Brook Letter]

We don’t seem to use the word “perseverance” very often. Maybe it’s because it’s got the word “severe” in it.

Or, maybe it’s because it seems a bit old-fashioned. King James Bible English. Maybe we are more inclined toward words like winning, succeeding, finishing. But here it is, the biblical mandate: persevere.

The truth of the matter is that the most mature believers and the best leaders know how to persevere. Whether or not they know the duration of the effort, the struggles ahead, the distance to the finish line–or even whether there is a finish line–they keep going. One foot in front of the other. Progressing one inch at a time. Each day a new opportunity to start again. People who persevere hold to a conviction that plodding ahead pleases God, even when there is no applause and no immediate reward.

Most of us have stubbed our toe on the famous line at the beginning of the epistle of James: “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds” (1:2). It would seem reasonable that Scripture would associate faith and courage with difficulties–but joy? Pure joy?

We undercut joy in our lives if we think it is the same thing as  pleasure or comfort. Joy is not the same thing as enjoyment. It is joy that keeps a parent plodding ahead during the challenging years of a child’s maturing; the enjoyment comes in brief spurts. So in spiritual leadership the joy comes from a deep inner conviction that doing the thing you do–teaching, mentoring, managing an organization, leading a small group–is right in God’s eyes, it is the right fit for you abilities, and it takes a long time to accumulate accomplishments. But that’s okay because the best accomplishments are built slowly and deliberately. Temples don’t spring up overnight. There is no prefabrication of the work of God. Joy is able to meet trials head on because it gives hope in the face of the trials.

James elaborates on the point:

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” (1:2-4).

Trials produce character. That is, if we persevere through the trials. If at the moment things get difficult in leadership we divert from the proper goal or turn around and run the other way, then not only have we abandoned the work, but we have lost the opportunity to grow as leaders. Every leader needs resistance, needs the sparks to fly and the gears to grind once in a while. The only way we change the status quo is to make some messes.

Perseverance is constancy, endurance, steadfastness, stickability, staying power. The objective of perseverance is hope, the vehicle is faith, and the motive is love. There are reasons, in other words–sometimes life or death reasons–why we must exercise the skill of perseverance.

The word “trial” in this passage of James, repeated elsewhere in the New Testament, is a neutral word. Depending on the context in which it is used, it can mean difficulty that someone is using to trip someone up (so, “temptation”), or a challenge that is an opportunity to prevail over (so “test”). The Evil One tempts; God tests. And oftentimes, when we are in the middle of trials we do not know which it is. And there is no time to try to figure it out. Pushing ahead and enduring is the order of the day.

Why do some people persevere where others throw up their hands and quit?

1. The courage to persevere comes from a deep conviction that one’s purpose is right, and that God is behind it. This conviction must be held with humility, however. Once in a while our convictions are misplaced.

2. We are able to persevere when we are aiming at long-term, not short-term rewards. Any effort can surge ahead at one point, or drop off significantly. Wars are won by persevering through lost battles. When we know that the end goal is a good one, and when we are realistic about the rise and fall of the journey to get there, we can keep moving ahead.

3. Our best chance at persevering is when the true horizon we are focussed on is heaven itself. This is not just theory or cliche. We really can have an entirely different quality of life and leadership if our deepest longing is to one day hear from Jesus: “well done, good and faithful servant.” That is what transforms leadership from influence to service.

4. We are more likely to persevere when we truly believe in the sovereignty of God. It is a comfort to know that God is not shaken by our mistakes, but neither is he impressed with our success. God knows our capabilities, because he made us. When we get things right it is like a chord being struck just right and hanging in the air.

5. We are more likely to persevere when we are not waiting for adulation, congratulation, or promotion. The moment we focus on impressing others our attention is diverted from the faithful completion of the task at hand.

6. We will persevere when we take things one day at a time–especially when we’re in a season of severe testing. God doesn’t want us to live in the past, and it is impossible to live in the future. The present moment is where we can lay out options, and choose the ones that will make this one day productive and good.

(There is much more to be said on this sensitive topic! More next week. To make sure you get the whole series, sign up for The Brook Letter)

What do you think?