Part one in a series on persistence.
There would be a large pile of crumpled sheets of paper laying at my feet right now, if it weren’t for the fact that I’m writing on my computer. Thankfully, words aren’t as hard to erase these days as they can sometimes be to write.
This article is about persistence. The funny thing is, it has proven to be such a challenge to write that I’ve almost given up on it several times. But every time I go to move on to something else, an old saying pops into my head:
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.
It’s a good rule. One that applies not only to writing but to every task. It’s called persistence.
What is Persistence?
Alternately we could say, “what does it mean to persist?”
Mirriam Webster’s Dictionary, defines “to persist” as “to go on resolutely or stubbornly in spite of opposition, importunity, or warning; to remain unchanged or fixed in a specified character, condition, or position.”
But persistence seems to be a concept that is more easily understood by illustration than by definition. Perhaps that is why Jesus often spoke about persistence in and through parables like this one:
“And [Jesus] said to them, “Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within and say, ‘Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you’? I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs.” (Luke xi.5-8, NKJV)
The Command to Persist
It seems as though everything God tells us to do comes with the additional command to persist in it:
- Prayer
“Then [Jesus] spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ” Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?” (Luke xviii. 1-7, NKJV)
- Knowing God
“And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” (Jeremiah xxix.13, NKJV)
- Spiritual Warfare
“Therefore, take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” (Romans vi.13, NKJV)
“For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.” (Proverbs xxiv.16, ESV)
Those are just a few of many, many examples.
Is Persistence a Good Thing?
I kind of gave the answer away with all those verses.
But I want to take some time to think about that question because, while the Bible speaks of persistence as a good thing, in practice we often perceive it as bad.
Let’s take for example a habit a lot of little children have. A habit called nagging. The child asks for something and if he or she doesn’t get an answer, or if they don’t get the answer they want, they ask again. And again. And again, and again, and again. We aren’t too fond of that habit in children. It’s annoying. It’s rude. It’s…bad. Or is it?
Let me ask you another question:
What is the first thing you think when you are told to persist in a difficult situation?
How about when you are ready to give up on the article you are writing but you can’t stop thinking of that saying, “if at first you don’t succeed try, try again.” I’ll tell you what my first thought was.
“How many times do I have to try again? Once? Twice? Three hundred times?”
When God tells us to persist, be it in prayer, spiritual warfare, witnessing, or studying His word our response is often similar.
How long do you expect me to persist? How many times am I going to have to knock on this door?
That seems to be our human nature. We don’t enjoy difficulty. Honestly, we would like to avoid it at all costs.
As a result, it doesn’t take much to convince us to give up and when we are reminded that we should persist it’s like a lock just got placed on our emergency exit.
But what if persistence isn’t meant to be the lock that stops us from escaping difficulty? What if we’ve got persistence all wrong?
Why We Persist and How
Persist is a verb. Think about that for a minute.
It’s an action word.
It’s not just the absence of something. To persist isn’t only to not give up, not quit, or not leave a difficult situation.
That is where the mistaken idea of the locked escape door comes from. Truly, persistence is more than just staying inside the building even though it’s on fire.
It’s an action. It’s a choice. And like most actions and choices there is a reason behind it.
So instead of comparing persistence to the locked emergency exit. Let’s imagine for a second that the door is wide open. You can get out of the burning building. You can escape, but…
There’s a child still inside who needs to be rescued.
In this scenario something is still preventing you from leaving the building and yet your attitude towards it is entirely different. You aren’t being forced to stay in a bad situation just because, rather you are choosing to endure the fire in order to save a life.
You want to stay.
Persistence is that desire to continue.
With this new perspective, let me ask you again:
How many times do you try again? How long do you persist?
True persistence means trying again and again and again. Not once, not three hundred times, but until you succeed. Not because you have to, but because you want to.
It’s like that child who is nagging. No one is forcing them to nag, and in fact, most parents are trying hard to teach them not to nag. But they keep it up because they are motivated to persist. They desperately want to succeed and get what they are asking for. They’re convinced that if they just ask one more time they’ll get what they’re after. Those kids don’t find persistence hard because their eyes are set on a goal.
In this Christian life we live, what is our goal? Why would we persist in prayer, in fighting against sin, in seeking God?
In Philipians iii.12 Paul wrote, “Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.” (ESV)
James i.12 says, “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.” (ESV)
If you are going to persist, or to press on as Paul says, you need to know why. We have been given an abundance of promises, a rich inheritance in Christ, but most of all we have been given God Himself.
Apparently, He thought this article on persistence would be a good opportunity for me to learn some and I’m so glad He did! Because persistence isn’t just important when it comes to writing, it is needed in the pursuit of Him. If He isn’t a goal worth pursuing with persistence, I don’t know what is.
In Christ
Quiana
P.S. I didn’t get to any historical stories this time around, but stay tuned. This was just the intro. In the next two posts we’ll get to learn how to practice persistence from the examples of Christians who did!