The Power of Persistence - Part 1

Intense fat cat, I believe his commitment to God.

The objective should remain strong. No matter what situation today, we learn more about the power of persistent everybody wants to succeed at whatever you do in your life and in fact many people talk about. They want to succeed. They desire to succeed. They have a real longing to succeed but you know what, wishing it and desiring it longing for what make you success, no matter what you doing nothing. This is probably one of the primary reasons that many people never reach the goals that even God is helping to set in their life simply because they start out in the first obstacle they hit the discouragement comes what I did.

That is more through it all overboard and say well I guess it wasn't meant to be in. Maybe this was just a dream I had. Maybe God wasn't in this and so what they do. They simply give up and quit and they settle for less than they settle for far less than God had in mind, because God has a will or purpose of the plan feel like and want him to do that. He also has goals for you to accomplish and to achieve and if he has set goals for your life and is willing to enable you to set those goals then for you to throw them overboard simply because you feel discouraged because you had some criticism or you just sort of given up hope. What you doing is you are settling for far less than what God's plan and what he has in mind for nephew one of those persons whose latest larger goals and just put them aside and said well you know maybe I was mistaken, was not worth it. I want to tell you you don't have to quit. You don't have to give up. You don't have to lay them aside. If you willing to develop this trade that I want to talk about in this message.

The title of this message is the power of persistence. The power of persistence and I want you turn if you will take couple of passages of Scripture you recall, in this the third chapter of Philippians. When Paul is talking about his goal, where he's headed to his relationship with the Lord is what he says he talked about his desire to know the Lord and to know him in a very intimate way, in a powerful way. He says in verse 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained it or have already begun to become perfect over to what I'm pressing on, I press on in order that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold by Christ Jesus, brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet but one thing I do, getting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on to the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus calls it twice. I'm not giving up.

I'm not commitment. He said no I'm pressing on. He had a desire he had a goal for his relationship with Christ.

It would not let him quit would not let him give up well when you agree that he is one of God's servants are to said wait a minute. Lord you call me to preach and teach the word of God established churches. Wait a minute I been beaten three times I been stoned ship right in the words of God. Enough is enough.

I mean after all, what do you expect of me how much you expect to be. How long do you think I can stay encouraged. I mean after all, look what I've been through and all the known and own, he goes with you know what he doesn't say that he just says here's the things that I have experienced in life and nowhere does he say so I think I'll just quit.

It doesn't say that.

And there's a reason I want to assure you that a few moments let me to say this, if you read the biographies of people who made any accomplishments and all throughout life. It doesn't make a difference. What field it's in really made a contribution to life is what you know if I you going to find this trait in them. That is the trait of persistence.

Now what in the world is persistent will.

Persistence is an attitude. Persistence is a characteristic.

It is a quality trait is a very important one, because as we just said it is to be found in the life of every person accomplishes or achieves anything. In fact what it is. It is a combination of two things. Persistence is a combination of strong desire and willpower is a combination of strong desire and willpower. So if you and I were to try to define what a persistence is is what is it is the capacity to continue own course in the face of difficulties, obstacles and discouragement and not quit is the capacity to continue own course in the face of difficulties, obstacles and discouragement and refused to give up. That's what persistence is all about.

Quitters never accomplish very much in line is people who feel like waiting is people who are encouraged to quit is people who may look at some reasons and say there's lots of reasons me to stop right here and lay this aside, but they don't give up. They don't quit no matter what. In every single field of life, even upon the people who've accomplish the people who achieve the people who really successful in life of the people who refuse to give up now you may say well what's this have to do with me because that I'm a homemaker and undisciplined turn raise my children answer question. Would you not agree. Mom would you not agree that that it takes persistence in raising godly children and ungodly world that it takes persistence in hanging there day after day after day with the mistakes that you make the phases you feel like you are times and defeats that she often times there with your kids in the space they become teenagers. You think llamas will give up and quit. Go do your thing though it takes persistence in hanging in there tenaciously holding on, refusing to give up refusing to quit because you have a very definite goal. Well, the big question comes the look of the apostle Paul's life and make the lives of the people who have refused to give up refuse to quit no matter what. Oftentimes, people who have come the place of absolute seemingly failure in their life that is the moment their goal got a fresh new spark of fresh new spark that lit something on the inside of them because the whole change in their life. So with the second question is this. First of all we say that persistence is that capacity to continue own course toward reaching your goal. In the face of difficulty obstacles in all kinds of discouragement and refused to give up no matter what will the second most important question here is this that is what is the motivation what is it that motivates a person to keep on keeping on. When everything seems to be so difficult and things seem to be impossible and the goal seems to be beyond the reach or when Paul said and he said I'm pressing on. I'm pressing on.

What is it that kept impressing on his word kept impressing on it was the goal that he saw it was the goal he longed for. It was the goal that had lit a burning desire on the inside of him. I think about this. The thing that determines the strength of our persistence is the value we place on that goal. This is what I've said before, if your goals are hazy, foggy and uncertain you not going to have much persistence they got to be very definite, very clear. You got a have a price tag on that is what am I willing to do what am I willing to give up my willing to suffer with common energy and effort in my will to put forth in order to reach this goal. Therefore, the value of my goal is going to determine the strength of my persistence and on the other hand, my persistence is going to reveal the value I place on that goal. That goal is valuable to me. I'm going to hang in there.

I'm in a keep on trying to look at failure in the face and Zarathustra accepted under look at the theater something temporary in my life I'm related aside, refuse to look back.

Very my defeats resurrect my goal keep moving on, because I know that my goal is worth going after. It is worth working for. It is worth the effort that is required and so people oftentimes once they get some obstacle.

I mean, there's so excited and they're so challenging it's a new job with this that the other whatever it might be an over so they had some discouragement, criticism, whatever that is laid aside. Fold up and that is never the will of God. If God is given you a goal and he has said it before you, you cannot afford to lay down until you have finished what God is called you to do well when I think about that. I think also about to know the intensity of it in the value but I have to ask you this question. For example, what goals do you have specific goals do you have in your life with. It has the your finances, your family, your future, whatever it might be whatever goal may be what specific goals do you have are you making progress toward reaching those goals.

What progress are you making are you tempted to give them up, and you hit some snag and you hit some obstacle are you being overwhelmed by criticism are you being laughed at and undermine the you feel like you just can't keep going on are you willing to keep going on that.

What's the go to see if your goal isn't clear is not going to be very persistent so that I should ask you and I will ask you what goals in your life are worth the effort worth the energy I view working at diligently not going lay it down no matter what the you have a goal indigo zeolite that strong. If not, listen, you missed something somewhere along the way because God who has a plan and the will for your life. He's the one if you will listen and who will help you set goals for your life. Things he wants to accomplish in new things he wants to accomplish three new things he wants to do for others because of you, don't lay down your goals if you laid them down. It's because you chose to not because you had to. So what does it take to reach our goals. It takes persistence it takes that determination, but I'm not giving up because I don't feel like I'm not giving up because this criticism about giving up because it's not popular I'm not giving up because things are tough not giving up because there are no funds are not giving up the ghost of others like it.

I'm not giving up. Because of this, that another I'm not giving up. Mr. Moses Minogue item in holy, holy, holy.

What about these verses like for example Psalm 46 it says see striving and what about the verse it says in Psalms also rest in the Lord. Now how do you make these two compatible resting in the Lord. See, striving, and on the other hand, persisting that is, in spite of all the difficulty in the obstacles in the hardship and the pain you're moving on and you refuse to give up will certainly it may appear in the service that there's a contradiction, but there's not because what's this, because in our persistence we are to do what in our persistence when not holding on in our own strength and you know with their own energy we going to make it work.

No missing. We are following the direction of our Lord. We are trusting in his divine sovereignty with trusting in his divine energy will not giving up. We not surrendering when not throwing in the tile we not tossing overboard because with trusting Almighty God to enable us to hang in there until he accomplishes his goal now like resting in him season. Striving is all a matter of trust is trusting in the living God. So we think about what the motivation is.

I'd ask you, do you have a goal this something you take seriously. Don't let this one go by and throughout. Think about that some of the time. Do you have a single goal in your life on more than one goal in your life. Something that you really believe with all of your heart you must accomplish you desire to accomplish.

You need to accomplish in your life. You believe God would have you to do that.

Is it crystal clear. Is it definite is it something that you can get excited about. Listen if you just float through life and you don't have any goals you have the determination you decide to float on into the pond in one of these days you you go to guide you just going to get on it until you've missed the point of why God put you in this world.

He didn't put any of us here to float through life, but rather that your life and my life would make a difference in someone else's life they live accomplish the goals that he set for us and God has goals for every single believer, and what you 21 a what you are 95 of my competitive God has no place in no time in your life where we just sit around and just bumbled through life and so well you know this. Take it easy. I'm going in her work my eight hours a day and come home and and eat and watch TV address not get updated five days week we can always take it easy.

Listen nothing meaningful, no gold, nothing you're working toward nothing to accomplish nothing that she let me ask a question at what age does the Bible say you stop serving God doesn't say and what age does it say relax doesn't say it and what age does it say just take it easy for now listen at what point does it say give up and quit this just on the town give up and quit. At no point God has something very different for every single one of us now so we said, first of all, what is persistence we dance event and what's the motivation. If the December that motivation is your life with the third very important question is this, and that is why is persistence such an absolute essential element in your life in my life.

If we are going to accomplish our goal. What makes this so important, I think a couple reasons.

It's extremely important and when you think about what happens when you and I set out to reach some goal in our life. Something always happens. So we asked the question why is persistence so vital simply this, because defeats, failures, mistakes, delays are an inevitable part of every single one of our lives. It is negative is what you do. We're all going to make mistakes.

We go to Senate times we don't have moments or periods of failure. We are going to suffer events we going to be defeated in this event of that one.

So that's inevitable. We live in a fallen world.

So the question is why is persistence so important because if I don't understand how to deal with those. I'm going to give up and persistence I believe has certainly has an answer that for example as you look back in history a look around you today. The people are accomplishing achieving of people who hanging in there and doing it and they're working it.

It's a difference between people who have a goal that's burning on the inside of them and people who just don't have any. They just want to get through life. They just want to return. Listen if you want those persons and says my goal is to retire my friend, please, please, please, please bury that one and start with something new because that is not a worthy goal. Now if your goal is to be able to finish your work in this area in order that you can accomplish this goal. That is one thing but if your goal is simply to live, and are working to finish out those last years so you can return only good and come and just relax and take it easy rest of your life. If the burning goal of your life is the retire you missed it.

Listen you are worthy of glory.

The goals that God has higher goals for you than that, and here's what you can find if you read and just look around you and think about what's happened in life. You are not living a better life today in its much easier for us because of people in our past who didn't give up when they faced great great trials in Harding's what about the all of us enjoy light bulbs who's responsible, Edison 10,000 times.

He said he failed but he became the most notable inventor in American history. You say well the Karen tells what I was an educated man. He was the you know how much formal schooling you had less than three months, less than three months he went to school, so if you want those persons and you said we now live amount in language. I don't have a college education or hostile education. Well, is that right. You can use that for an excuse because this and if you have a God-given goal and you have enough persistence you can reach your goal and God's not going to give you a goal that he doesn't want you to reach listen. History is full of people who came to the most difficult dire circumstances. And what did they do they refuse to give up refused to accept their poverty it refused to accept their circumstance in the situation refused and decided they were going to do something different unable to say team up and whether you're a teenager living in poverty somewhere over the you are an elderly person that does make and it was right you are all given in listen. Don't give in. Don't give up, no matter what you are somebody in the eyes of God. Don't give into what people tell you you cannot do don't surrender your goals and surrender your dreams.

Don't listen, don't let Satan and sin absolute destroy your life because you think you don't have a chance and and you got the bottom into this deal and that life just read you wrong you can change every bit of that.

If you will. The trust the living God. Don't give up and don't quit no matter who you are thank you for listening to the power of Christensen. If you like to know more about her family more intense ministries that my intact satellite team is typecast as the presentation of intense ministries advantage of