Persevering When the Waves Knock You Down
Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him. James 1:12 (NIV)
There are so many times in my life that I have wanted to give up. Give up what, you ask? Well…trying to figure things out, helping ungrateful people, doing the next right thing, and even being kind. I get tired, frustrated, irritated, and simply worn out with life’s nonsense. The Holy Spirit reminds me to back off and make some room. I usually do! But that is not what I want to do. Being persistent is more my style. Can you identify? Julie Lavender (All God’s Creatures) shares what a hermit crab taught her about persevering.
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David and I saw a large walking whelk as we strolled along Driftwood Beach on Jekyll Island in Georgia. Anxious to get a close-up video to show our four-year-old grandson. Benaiah, I approached the edge of the water. “Too close,” I said to David when I saw the hermit crab’s legs disappear, and the whelk shell, the discarded home of a sea snail, came to a halt in the sand.
My biologist husband gingerly picked it up, turning it slowly so I could show Benaiah the hermit crab peaking from the opening. David replaced the shell, and we stepped back to keep watching.
Soon, the shell appeared to be walking on its own again, but the next wave rolled it over. We saw legs floundering about until another wave tumbled the shell upright, and again, our new friend kept moving forward.
As I watched the hermit crab persevere, I couldn’t help but think about my mom’s newest challenge with macular degeneration. Just a couple of days before my husband and I escaped to Jekyll Island for an overnight getaway, the doctor informed my mom and me that her eye disease had progressed enough that she could no longer drive.
Discouraged but taking it in stride, Mom accepted the change, anxious to discuss a new routine as I delivered her safely to the home where she lives alone, just 7 minutes from my house.
When the waves of this world knock me down, I certainly hope I can persevere like that hermit crab and my 83-year-old mom. I know I’ll need God’s help to do so.
Heavenly Father, let this Walk of Faith be my prayer today. Help me make time this week to share words of encouragement through a phone call, text, email, or card. Let me find things that I can do physically that will help a friend during a time of need. AMEN.