Don't Quit

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIGV3ms_9eM

Worthy of It All ~ Bethany Wohrle

...let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus… ~ Hebrews 12:1-2 NIV

When you’re running your race but cannot see the ending, you’re in danger of quitting too soon.

For the past two weeks, Brad has been battling a double ear and sinus infection. He has been in horrible pain. He felt like his left eye was being pushed out of his head, causing darkness on one side of his eye’s peripheral vision, and double vision on the other side. To help him, we’ve been praying; he's seen his doctor, and he’s taken essential oils and antibiotics. 

Last night, as we were drifting off to sleep, I prayed for him, again, outloud. Then, in my spirit, I asked God if it was handled. I know I heard God say, “Yes.” My night’s sleep was rather bumpy, but each time I would awaken, I would pray and praise, as “Worthy of It All” played in my spirit. Then this morning, Brad burst through the bedroom door. I jolted out of bed when he said his eye popped! I am relieved to say his eye is fine. He meant the tear duct in his left eye, which had been plugged, popped. He could see perfectly and ALL the pressure was GONE! PRAISE JESUS!

Though those days were long, it was only 12 days. Some of my friends have been waiting on God’s answers for years. Sometimes, when we’ve been in the trenches for so long, we can lose sight of what we’re fighting for and tend to focus only on what’s right before us. That’s why we’re told to fix our eyes on Jesus. Not only is Jesus our Finish Line, but He’s also our Victory, our Hope, and our Help. With Jesus before us, and Holy Spirit constantly by our side, we cannot fail if we don’t quit. Our job is just to take one more step, and then another. Then, before we know it, with our eyes fixed on Christ, we’ll be running towards Victory, empowered by His strength.

If you’ve been waiting on an answer from God, whether it’s been days or years, don’t quit! Just take another step, keeping your eyes fixed on Christ.

©Heather Potts 2021

I'm a Runner who Perseveres

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRi_4-Qfq2U&list=RDSRi_4-Qfq2U&start_radio=1

Believer ~ Rhett Walker

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus … ~ Hebrews 12:1-2 NIV

I’m a runner who perseveres.

I’m not a quitter.

It’s not in my blood, because it’s not in HIS!

Everyone has an identity: what they see and believe to be true about themselves. Father God sees your identity as defined by who you are in Him. When God calls you by name, revealing your identity in Him, it changes you. It changes the way you think and act but doesn’t make the road easy. But just as not all roads are smooth, neither are they all bumpy. If you drive through our city streets, you’ll find some newly paved roads, some with patched potholes, and some with potholes big enough to swallow a small child. As you grow in your relationship with God, you’ll begin to see yourself the way He sees you.

Your identity is written throughout scripture, and for everyone who overcomes, God has a new name written on a white stone that is shared between you and He, (Revelation 2:17). Five years ago, when I began seeking the name God had for me, some friends shared their names. Beloved and Victorious were among them, with each name being as unique as the recipient. On October 26, 2015, God called me His “one who perseveres.” Within a few days, He gave me the accompanying scripture, Hebrews 12:1-2.

Your identity – the truth you believe about yourself – helps you push ahead or causes you to fall back, to get up again or stop trying. Your pastor, teachers, parents, and friends will help to shape your identity. However, only Jesus is the source of your strength, courage, and true identity.

I’m a runner who perseveres.

Who are you?

©Heather Potts 2020

Finisher

I will cry to God Most High, Who performs on my behalf and rewards me [Who brings to pass His purposes for me and surely completes them]! ~ Psalm 57:2 AMPC

I just love a good movie, don’t you? But, it’s the ending by which I judge the overall movie. Truly, it can have a slow beginning and a weird middle, but the ending is what seals it as “good” or “bad.” Ironically enough, I don’t rate my life by the same standards. What about you?

I have a brain for “the details,” which is good for work, our budget, or planning any event, but not very good for judging my life. Being a devotional writer (focusing on short, quick posts), I tend to forget the bigger picture. But if I’m going to run with perseverance, as Hebrews 12:1-2 encourage, then I also need to remember that Jesus is the “author and finisher” of my faith, and it’s upon Him that I’m to fix my eyes, not the details of the moment or the season. Psalm 57:2 and Hebrews 12:2 both declare that God is a finisher and completer of things in my life. And even when the unexpected, frustrating, or hurtful things happen, I need to remember that it’s not over yet, not by a longshot. Yes, maybe one of my dreams or desires needs to be put on-hold for a bit (a bit longer than I’d like), but that doesn’t mean it’s gone for good.

Father, forgive me for doubting Your faithfulness, for forgetting Your promise to complete in me the good work You began. Holy Spirit, keep me focused on how BIG my God is vs. the smallness of my circumstances. Thank you for the reminder that it’s not over yet, because it’s Jesus, not circumstances, who is the Finisher and Completer in my life. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen.

©Heather Potts 2017

Not One

Blessed be God, who has given peace to his people Israel just as he said he’d do. Not one of all those good and wonderful words that he spoke through Moses has misfired. May God, our very own God, continue to be with us just as he was with our ancestors—may he never give up and walk out on us. May he keep us centered and devoted to him, following the life path he has cleared, watching the signposts, walking at the pace and rhythms he laid down for our ancestors. ~ 1 Kings 8:56-58 MSG

I love that when I’ve come to the end of what I know, there is God, and entering His presence through worship always opens my eyes. Last night, as I was worshiping, I felt Holy Spirit highlight, “I am defined by all His promises / Shaped by every word He says,” from I Am No Victim by Kristene DiMarco. Thinking of God’s promises, I was reminded of a time we sought counsel from some of our leaders who recounted their own story of hardship. The husband said he sat in his chair and confessed God’s promises, to spite the devil, knowing that God would stand by His promises. And had since come through on many of those promises. Then I went to my list of confessions and found the promises God spoke to me:

God did not give me a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given me a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control], (2 Timothy 1:7)

My Father in Heaven disciplines me by teaching me His Word. This gives me the power to keep myself calm in the face of temptation and of adversity, (2 Timothy 3:16)

I am strong in the Lord [and will draw my strength from Him and be empowered through my union with Him] and in the power of His [boundless] might (Ephesians 6:10)

I hold the 5-fold nature of the Holy Spirit: gentle and quiet, purity, positive attitude, patient, and gracious, (1 Peter 3:2, 4; 1 Tim 4:12)

I am the guardian of our home, creating a safe, healthy, joyful, and creative environment for my family to grow and love and learn (Titus 2:4; Proverbs 31)

As we teach our children about Father God and His Word, it will stimulate, penetrate, teach and be impressed diligently upon their hearts and minds, (Deuteronomy 6:7)

No matter what the circumstance I have the mind of Christ and operate in His wisdom and ability (1 Corinthians 2:16)

Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, (Hebrews 12:1-2)

If you’re struggling with or in need of something today, run to your Father and ask Him what His promises are for you. Rest assured that not one has failed.

©Heather Potts 2017