Monday, January 26, 2009

Endure


1 Thess 3:5 ~ For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you, and our labour be in vain.


Knowing that the Lord has something great in store for me, this past week, I began to reflect on what it would take to receive the promise(s). Our ministry has been fasting and praying for the last 10 days; seek the Lord for a fresh anointing and more of His spirit. As a corporate body, we turned off our T.V.'s, and radios, stopped reading the paper and tuned out of the world's events. Our total focus was on the Lord.

This was a time of pressing in and continuing to the end. The whole purpose of our consecrated time was to draw closer to the Lord and to really seek His plan for our lives. Spiritually this was a great time because God was doing different things for each one of us.

But....It was hard.

Our spiritual growth of course did not please the tempter. During this time I felt that I was not going to make it. It seemed that everything that I wanted to do happened during this consecration period. Our new President was took the oath of office, a local group had a wonderful concert (we were allowed to go), and all of my favorite shows had special surprises. I wanted to cheat, quit, and give up. Even with all that, my spirit kept speaking endure to the end.

Well I made it through quite well up until Friday. I ran a couple of errands and was verbally attacked by one of the clerks at the Christian store. I had called to check on an item and someone told me they had it. When I arrived, she told me that the store did not carry this items and I was mistaken but I told her that one of her collegues had given me this info. As she was giving me her point of view (nice way of telling me off), I was shocked and amazed but my spirit kept saying to me endure to the end. Now the unfocused, non-consecrated me, might have had my own point of view (nice way of saying giving it back to her) but the consecrated me kept my focus: ENDURE TO THE END.

I kept my cool, got my items and then left the store. But all the while I was thinking "FOR REAL?!" Where was the love of God in this encounter? Should I have confronted her lack of love unto her sister? Was I right in letting it go? I don't know but I endured to the end.

Each time we are placed in a position that may challenge the God in us, it is our faith in Him that allows us to hold our peace. It is our faith in Him that may need to grow a little. It is our faith in Him that the tempter is trying to destroy, so that we question ourselves. The tempter knows that all it takes is one thing to push us over the edge. But God sends a word to show us our level of faith and assure us that our labour is not in vain. Our duty then is to remain in the faith and to endure to the end.

I know that the enemy was trying to unravel 10 days of communion with the Lord in one encounter but he lost that battle. My faith in God held me together and told me that He is the warrior in these battles.

Sometimes the best thing we can do to show our faith in Him is to pull up your bootstraps and ENDURE TO THE END.

Keep Walking,

MiVida
Shoes by Steve Madden ~ Enforce

1 comment:

Racquel Simone said...

Timely! Endurance will surely pay off in the end! Our heavenly reward will be worth far more than any other, but I do look forward to earthly rewards I can receive if I ENDURE!