Persistent Faith

‘Now pick up the other arrows and strike them against the ground. So the king picked them up and struck the ground three times. But the man of God was angry with him. “You should have struck the ground five or six times!’ 2 Kings 13:18-19

The key to breaking barriers is persistence. You cannot afford to go halfway and stop. Breaking barriers requires that you be unrelenting, do all that is required, and go all the way. You must stubbornly persist until you get the result you seek. Scripture gives us several examples of men and women who persisted until they broke through the barriers before them. Elisha desired a double portion of Elijah’s anointing and it was not going to come easy. Yet Elisha was persistent amidst the distractions and discouragements. He persistently followed Elijah and his persistence paid off [2Kings 2:1-12]. The life of Ruth as represented in the scripture is a story of persistence. ‘But Ruth replied, Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!’ Ruth1:16-17. God requires that we be persistent in obedience, love, works, growth, prayers and so on. The persistent attitude often gets God’s attention as represented in the parable of the persistent widow [Luke 18:1-8 MSG]. ‘But how much of that kind of persistent faith will the Son of Man find on the earth when he returns?’ Luke 18:8b [MSG]. Today’s scripture reading highlights what not to do when it comes to breaking barriers. King Jehoash did not understand the principle of persistence, and so obtained only partial victory from his enemies. He did not enter into the will of God for the Israelites and for himself because he did not persist. As Christians, some of the battles what we encounter cannot be won except by persistence. Most times, the last lap of every race requires persistence. Even our Lord Jesus, there were many times during His mission that  He was tired. Yet only because He persevered was He able to gain the victory we all enjoy today [Luke 22:44]. ‘Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning’ Ps.30:5b. Be persistent.

Thought: Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. [Heb.12:3].  Destinies are tied to your breakthrough. It is not only about you.