The Rewarding Power Of Endurance

Endurance is resilience, the ability to survive or the staying power (keep on attitude). It is the determination not to be deterred or the propensity to resist the temptation of quitting in the midst of discomfort or pain. It is the stamina for continued existence. Without endurance you lack the energy to spur you on in spite of the state of affairs. People with endurance have a knack for tolerance (patience) and a lack of grumbling. Endurance is a significant prerequisite of true success .It is a distinctive mark of genuine winners.

Life is not an all-smooth passage. On the road that carries life to its destination, are complexities, impediments, trials and temptations, and disappointments as well. Endurance is the trusted and comfortable vehicle that is able to effectively carry you on and through this typically rough road to the end. School life is not effortless. Your work like any other occupation will more often than not be difficult and demanding. You will face hurdles that can easily dampen your spirit and resolve (discourage), and lure you into giving up on pursuing your goals. It is therefore crystal-clear that you need endurance. It is said that champions never quit and quitters never become champions. Losers easily give up. It is failing to get up after a fall that matters it is not the fall in itself that really matters.

Being a student is a good thing. It can be tough but pleasurable, demoralizing but out of the ordinary (exciting). It is how you respond to the circumstance of the moment, in which you find yourself that really counts, and not the circumstance itself. Mark my word, there is always a way out of any situation. Listen to this. In 1999,my first mark in Mathematics (M161-as it was called) as a first year student of economics in the school of humanities at the university of Zambia great east road campus was an off-putting 38% compared to several others who had gotten more than 80%. The percentage I got shattered my exhilaration but not my hope for a better grade. I endured the pain of the moment. I remained optimistic, decisively changed my approach to the way I handled the subject, and did not let the grip of fear overwhelm me. This involved having a tête-à-tête with the lecturer particularly to seek his counsel over my poor result. A Mr. Chishiba, the then lecturer was very helpful and he took time to offer constructive advice. The next test saw me get a higher grade of 61%, a clear improvement. Had I lacked endurance, I would have quickly resigned into quitting the subject of mathematics with no hope for a positive comeback or simply being comfortable with getting similar pitiable grades without endeavouring to make progress. But I kept on keeping on with a firm hold on my definitive goal of turning into a winning student. And I did that. In Galatians 6:9, the bible commands us not to give up on performing wonderful deeds for in due time, we will reap rewards. Endure or keep on unrelenting for this will bring you vast rewards (Hebrews 10:36).

Your resolve to pursue your goals under the cover of discipline, to purposely abstain from pleasure, to manage time and friendships, and also to understand, will severely be tested, but blessed are you when you endure. Learn to endure hard times and harsh conditions as a good soldier does (Psalms 132). I know it is hard to consistently wake up in the middle of night to read when everyone else is sleeping. It is difficult to abstain from sex when everyone else is doing it. It is tough to work for God in the midst of a busy schedule. Nevertheless, it is a pain that you must endure. Fight the good fight of faith and finish the pursuit that you have started or the course of action that you have embarked on, i.e. study (2 Timothy 4:7). Above all, endure mockery or contempt for Christ’s sake (Psalms 123). Do not hasten to retaliate when provoked. Expect to be opposed when you are pursuing a good cause. Remember, to every action there is reaction and to every movement there is resistance of sorts. You will face opposition from your own flesh especially when you critically set to pray or to read the bible. The flesh enjoys leisure. It is prone to be against any act that is likely to upset its comfort or that which is a thorn in its side.

Sincere and rightful acts particularly those that gratify or are in accord with God usually become a sting in the flesh and likely to be resisted e.g. abstention from food (fasting) and prayer. Notice how when you pick a newspaper to read you read through from cover to cover with ease. To the contrary, when you single out a bible to read, before you realize it, you are already nodding off or gliding into sleep even before soaking up a single page or verse. Such are the acts you must come to terms with and vigorously withstand. Note also that when you are decisively different in word and deed, you are likely to be opposed. His own brothers opposed Young Joseph in the bible because he stood out as the enthusiastic dreamer (Genesis 39). Not withstanding resistance from any quarter, passionately pursue your clear goals and follow the right course even if you are in the minority. Three young men in the bible according to the book of Daniel chapter 3, by the names of Misheck, Shadrech and Abednego were opposed to the point of death because they resolutely stood out for a worth cause, that of denying to bow to the golden image besides God. They resisted intimidation and endured the pressure of the furnace. When you endure with a conviction that your undertaking is right, you will come out victorious. And God comes to the rescue of such. Jesus Christ himself was intensely opposed for his beliefs and assertions, yet he did not waver. He endured insults and did not insult back (1 Peter 2:22).

A disciplined and understanding individual endures. People who endure for a cause end up as leaders (2 Timothy 2:12). There are many examples in the bible but notable among them are Daniel and Joseph. Nelson Mandela, the great statesman, endured prison conditions for 27yrs for the sake of his goal of seeing a liberated South Africa where black and white people lived together side by side in harmony with equal opportunities. Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia in the struggle for the independence of Zambia endured prison conditions, so did many other outstanding leaders past and present. In your quest to succeed, endure the pain that comes with the effort that is put in and the circumstances that you cannot change. In your journey to success, you will have to endure aloneness and even rejection, but it will not be for long. Great leaders are those who have dared to pass alone in darkness where multitudes have feared to tread. At times your friends and enemies will falsely label you with libellous names and regard you with derision. Do not be sidetracked by it and never give up. Stay focused in pursuance of your goals. Do the work of an individual striving for success. Execute with ardent commitment all the duties of your occupation (2 Timothy 4:5). I urge you to last to the end. You graduate and progress. It is often those that endure to the end who get it right. Success will come to you if, in addition to the other keys already discussed, you endure. God almighty bless you exceedingly.