Have you thrown away your confidence?

So do not throw away your confidence;

it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere

so that when you have done the will of God,

you will receive what he has promised.

Hebrews 10:35-36

God is calling us to persevere. I hear his call when I read this verse and I heard it this morning while listening to a speech on perseverance. The speaker told the story of three women who persevered through physical, mental, and financial disabilities. April Holmes, a track and field star had her leg amputated in a commuter train accident. She went on after lots of therapy and training with a prosthesis to set records in the 100, 200, and 400 meter sprints. The other, Anne Sullivan, was put under the care of a loving nurse in a mental hospital who never gave up on her, even when everyone else did. She responded to the nurse's care and improved. Completely healed, she later dedicated her life to caring for people like herself. She ended up coaching Helen Keller through her disabilities. If it had not been for Anne Sullivan's loving and godly nurse, the name of Helen Keller would have remained unknown. The names of these first two ladies remain virtually unknown, but the last one has become a household name. The third person she spoke of who never gave up was Paula Deen. She started out as a divorced mom of two young sons with $200.00 in her bank account. Today she is a multi-millionaire doing what she loves--cooking.

We have a mighty God on our side to help us through whatever this nasty old world throws our way. If we think the barriers are too high or the cost too great to get around the obstacles, we have thrown away our confidence and forfeited our rich rewards. How tragic. Never throw away your confidence, for in just a very little while, "He who is coming will come and will not delay" (Hebrews 10:37). So listen to your Master Coach and receive what he has promised. Hold tight to your confidence and don't ever give up!!!

"Although the world is full of suffering, it is full also of the overcoming of it."

Helen Keller, author and blind and deaf educator