Romans 5:4, New Living Translation:
“Endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment.
For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”
The longer you’re a Christian, the older you get, the closer you come to understanding that living this life is about endurance.
And Romans promises it won’t lead to disappointment, “for we know how dearly God loves us.”
Sometimes, people overpromise and we’re disappointed.
I have an idea that if I were airlifted and dropped next to Yellow Stone’s Old Faithful, the trusty geyser would disappoint. Despite all the promises of the coffee table books.
“Nice fountain. Now can I see some bison? Oh, the bison aren’t here today. Ah, it’s next month that they come out.”
But God never overpromises because he can’t lie. And if he says we won’t be disappointed, I can barely imagine what he’s imagined up for us.
You and I will not be disappointed when our race is over.
Isn’t that when the glory, the happiness always begins? Isn’t that when you can rest, when you can relax and smile again? When the race is done?
Just keep going tonight.
The night is already much later than you think*. For Christians, that’s a reason to get up another day and endure.
[Photo: “Lawrence of Arabia”]
*There’s a beautiful poem of despair by the late Robert Service which ends:
Ah! the clock is always slow;
It is later than you think;
Sadly later than you think;
Far, far later than you think.
But we have Christ, the resurrection, we might have the same clock, but midnight means something different.
