To start from Part One click here.
Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. Romans 5:3-4
When I first read this verse I thought it had a typo.
Wasn’t hope supposed to be first on the list?
After all, that’s how the world often portrays it—as a fluffy feeling that lets us float through hard times.
But it turns out that’s not the way it works in the Kingdom.
Suffering produces perseverance…
We all know what that’s like—those are the days when we simply get up and put one foot in front of the other by faith when feelings are nowhere to be found.
Perseverance, character…
If we do that enough days in a row, it changes who we are because of all we learn about who He is in the middle of our circumstances.
And character, hope…
When who we are is transformed, hope comes to stay. Because we know in the core of our being that we can face anything with God.
Getting to a different kind of hope is a journey.
It doesn’t happen all at once. It’s the culmination of our hearts taking a thousand little steps of faith. And along the way choosing to say, “Yes, God, I will stick with you no matter what.”
Real hope meets us where we expect it least and need it most.
So if life seems hard right now and you wonder how much longer you can go on, take heart…
Hope is already on the way.
p.s. I wrote this post covered up on the couch surrounded by Kleenex and cough drops. I’ve got the crud—and nothing gets me down like being sick! So I’ve really needed this reminder too. Amen and achoo!
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For each post in this series I’ll be giving away a Hope and Encouragement card pack from DaySpring so you can help some hurting hearts. It includes 10 cards (I wrote some of them) and would be worth over $30 if you got them at a store. I’ll announce all the winners when the series is done. Just leave a comment on any of the posts—or on more than one for extra entries!
(Subscribers, remember to go to the post to leave a comment. Thanks!)
*This giveaway is done but you can enter a new one and join me in The Rest of Your Story series by clicking here!
