Rom 5, 6

When I was growing up, I really enjoyed soccer.  It was a sport that came naturally to me, so that probably contributed to my enjoyment of it.  In middle school, it was about having fun, and since we won a lot, it was fun.  High school soccer was harder, and we had preseason.  So I endured preseason and enjoyed the season. Then came college.  Guys were bigger, stronger, faster, and every player on the team was the best player from their high school.   I remember my first preseason.  I thought I was going to die.  I lost 10 pounds that week.  How does a guy 5’10” 140 pounds lose 10 pounds?  The answer, running, and lots of it.  Miles and miles.  Sometimes with people on your back. I remember waking up after the first morning and thinking something was wrong with my body because I had to move my legs with my arms.  I knew getting in shape was important, but this was excessive I thought. 

One day during a video session the coach had us do something very strange.  We watched a portion of a world cup soccer game.  But not the way you would normally watch it.  We just followed one guy.  Guess what?  In a 90 minute soccer game, the average player only touches the ball about 4 minutes.  Guess what he is doing the other 86 minutes? – running. Later the coach went on to explain the pain we are going through will produce endurance.  When we have endurance, we become more effective in the game.  When each player is more effective, we have a greater chance at winning.   He encouraged us not only to push through the pain, but revel in it - knowing that this pain was producing a complete soccer player. And last he shared, there is no short cut in that process.  Of course, a lot of that was lost at the time because I was still thinking how dumb I was to choose a sport that over 90% of the time I was just running.

 Today’s passage says,

            Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,

(Romans 5:3-4 ESV)

I want hope and power via the Holy Spirit. I want to know God’s love intimately. I’d even like a healthy heaping of hope.

But you know what I don’t want?

I don’t want to grow my character. I certainly don’t enjoy practicing endurance. And, without a doubt I do not want to suffer.

Who signs up for that?

I pray that I can begin to look at life’s trials and sufferings as character growing, endurance building and hope breathing seasons in the Lord. Romans 5 clearly states that the end cannot come without the means.
What are you simply enduring right now? How can you turn it into a season of endurance building instead? Allow God to refine you and in turn, pour His love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.