Lacking Endurance

We, as Americans, have become a weak people, lacking endurance. It is noticeable every time we run into trouble.

At the beginning of an international conflict, we are focused and determined to succeed. Within months, however, the complaining begins and we begin to find fault with the battle plan. Soldiers, who were widely celebrated at the onset, become targets of ridicule and abuse.

We are doing it again with the COVID 19 pandemic. At the beginning people willingly hunkered down, not just to keep from getting the disease, but also for the welfare of the community. As restrictions eased, however, our determination to defeat the pandemic has faltered. People are not taking the recommended precautions seriously and confirmed cases of the disease are inreasing rapidly. Concern for ourselves and others has gone out the window. Americans just don’t have the resolve to do the right thing over time.

God, on the other hand, values endurance. He sees the positive end result of endurance, especially endurance in doing good. James 1:2-4 says, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full affect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”