My favorite Peanuts^® cartoon strip has Lucy sitting patiently (?) listening in her booth—Psychiatric Advice 5˘, while Charlie Brown goes on and on listing all his troubles. Finally, Lucy says, “Charlie Brown, you just need a life...”

Like us, Charlie Brown wanted a quick fix, but Lucy's 5˘ worth is true. We all need to get a new life.

As children of God, we have a difficult, straight and narrow path to follow in order to fulfill God's purposes for our lives. While on that path, we are to “submit to God, resist the devil and come near to God” (James 4:7-8).

In addition to the path being tough to tread, it has many detours, potholes and construction areas. For me, the detours aren't bad because there are signs to point the way. Construction areas cause delays, but they are on the road I am traveling. It is the potholes along the way that cause me to have a longer list than Charlie Brown.

My potholes get so deep, I cannot find my way out. Mine are filled with past hurts and failures, the “never good enough” record spinning in my head, depression, fatigue, arthritic pain, erratic blood sugars.

Perseverance (Keep Trying)

Two frogs fell into a can of cream
(Or so I've heard it told...)
The sides of the can were shiny and steep;
The cream was deep and cold!
“O, what's the use?” said Number One.
“Tis fate—no help's around.
Goodbye, my friend! Goodbye, sad world!”
And weeping still, he drowned.
But Number Two (of sterner stuff),
Dog-paddled in surprise.
The while he wiped his creamy face,
And dried his creamy eyes.
"I'll swim a while at least," he thought;
(Or so it has been said—)
“It wouldn't really help the world
If one more frog was dead!”
An hour or two he kicked and swam;
Not once he stopped to mutter—
But kicked and swam, and swam and kicked,
Then hopped out ... via butter!

—Author Unknown

A friend of mine always ends our phone calls or times together saying, “Take a risk with Jesus. Persevere Sister, persevere.” That's my challenge for you!

Next month we talk about perseverance and depression. Can they co-exist?

Copyright © 2009 by Constance Gilbert
*Coda = the ending, in music, or the section at the end of a text giving additional information.

Photo courtesy of David Shankbone and Wikimedia.org, per Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 License. Share