How can we
carry on when the tough times seem to never end? What can we do when our dreams
are taking longer than expected to materialize? Aside from dreams, our everyday
goals may not come to pass in the expected manner:
·
The
job search takes months, instead of weeks.
·
Our
healing takes longer than expected.
·
That
new business opportunity doesn’t produce immediate results.
·
Important
relationships take time to become stronger.
·
It
takes longer than predicted to pay off debts.
It is so
hard to keep up hope and faith when all we see in front of us is more struggles.
That sea of woes can seem endless. But, are we seeing the truth, or is the
beach on the horizon obscured by fog?
Florence Chadwick
In T.D Jakes’
book, Destiny, he tells the story of
this champion swimmer. In 1952, she attempted to swim from Catalina Island to
the California coastline. That’s 26 miles. After 15 hours, a heavy fog rolled in.
She swam for
about another hour, and then started to doubt herself. In addition, she was
exhausted in every way possible. Florence asked the support team following her
in a boat to pick her up.
Here’s the
interesting part: Ms. Chadwick discovered that she had quit less than a mile
short of her destination. She hadn’t been able to see the coastline because of
the fog.
Two months
later, she tried again. The weather conditions hadn’t changed. Fog still
obscured her vision. This time, she kept a mental image of her destination in
her mind. She pushed herself to reach the shore. Florence Chadwick attained her
miraculous victory.
My Conclusion
Pastor Jakes
reminds us to dig in our heels and never quit. Here is another quote from the book:
“You likely are closer
than you could ever imagine. Keep seeing the destination in your mind so that
it will give you the strength to relentlessly move toward it, despite the
tiredness, despite the aches, despite the feeling of wanting to give up.”
The Bible tells us...
“…in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”—Galatians 6:9
(ESV)
************
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for
welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Jeremiah 29:11 (ESV)
How are you keeping your victory in
sight?
