Perseverance is demonstrating persistent determination. At its simplest, perseverance is finishing what is started. It is the characteristic that separates life’s winners from its losers even as it makes winners out of those who appeared to have lost. It is to character what the heart is to the body.
Teddy Roosevelt, Americas 26th President, described perseverance very poignantly and eloquently when he said, “The credit belongs to the man in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly…Who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never known neither victory nor defeat.”
The credit belongs to the person who makes the decision to enter the “arena” for a purpose, does their best to achieve that purpose and preservers to the end. In a long distance race with 20 runners only one will win first place. Does that mean that the other 19 lost? No, it means they didn’t come in first.
Did they put forth their best effort and strive to the end to achieve what they wanted to accomplish during the race or, when things got tough, did they slack off or quit? If, at the end of the race a runner can echo the words of the new testament writer, Paul, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith;” they, regardless of their final position, have won.
Walter Elliott said, “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after another.” In a similar manner, the course of life is not one long race; it is many short races run one at a time. The winners in life are the ones who, regardless of the outcome of each race, on a daily basis, continue to fight the good fight, keep the faith and persevere until life’s course is finished.
However, perseverance is a two edged sword. A sword that can effect lives for either good or bad because, as sure as oxygen is necessary for life; our lives are going to reflect those things and people we persistently determine to think about and associate with.
That being the case, how does one put themselves into a position to have the right thoughts, friends, and associates? To paraphrase the words of new testament writer, Paul, by having the perseverance to think about whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, excellent, and worthy of praise and associating with those who do the same.
