“We must never stop looking to Jesus. He is the leader of our faith, and he is the one who makes our faith complete. He suffered death on a cross. But he accepted the shame of the cross as if it were nothing because of the joy he could see waiting for him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne.”

I am not much of a gym rat. I go to the gym to work on my health and fitness, but I don’t really like it very much. It’s hard and it can be painful. It’s tiring and exhausting. It’s not easy. In fact, it’s downright frustrating. I’ll try to lift weights, but despite doing three sets of twelve reps to build muscle, I still can’t lift very much. In fact, by the time I get to ninth or tenth rep of the third set of bicep curls, I’m barley able to push any more weight. Arnold Schwarzenegger, I am not! Do you know what I do, though? I endure. I press on. I lift those three-pound weights those last couple of times just to say that I did it! Ok, it’s actually more than three pounds, but not much. Like I said, I am not a powerlifter or bodybuilder.

Endurance and perseverance are part of the life of a Christ-follower. There will be times when following Jesus is hard and might even be painful. What do we do? We press on. We endure. Why? Because that’s what Jesus did. In our verse for today, we see that Jesus endured the shame of the cross because of the joy he could see waiting for Him. Jesus persevered through the pain and the shame and is now glorified because of it. Jesus is our example of endurance and perseverance.

What are you facing, as a follower of Jesus? What is causing you to want to throw in the towel and give up? Is it a struggle with doubt, where you’re unsure God’s love and concern for you? Is it a struggle with pain and sickness? Or maybe it’s a struggle with finances and you’re wondering if God will come through. Is it persecution? Are you being threatened for your faith and is it causing you to rethink your commitment to Christ? Don’t give up, friend! Keep going! Keep pressing on! Keep persevering! A joyous future with Jesus awaits you. Keep your eyes on Jesus and look for the joy in the journey. You will make it. Keep going.

By Shawn Cornett, Bible League International staff, United States