This is a Test… Longevity

We are in a time of testing. God is testing us and it’s for the purpose of promotion. Three primary areas of testing in this season are Humility, Loyalty and Longevity. If humility is staying low and loyalty is staying faithful then longevity is just staying!

Longevity appears to be a major area of enemy attack. Almost everyone I know has been tempted to quit. How about you? Now, I don’t believe the enemy has the power to prevent us from reaching our destinies however, I believe he can deceive us into quitting prematurely.

In Galatians 6:9 St. Paul exhorts us to “…not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” The enemy’s plan is to get us to “give up” just before harvest time.

The Weight of Unfulfilled Promises
It is a difficult thing to carry the weight of unfulfilled promises. Many of us have been waiting a very long time on the promises of God, this has caused some to lose heart and quit. Here’s a truth… the greater the promises the greater the testing. I’ve heard John Paul Jackson say it this way “the depth of the valley is proportional to height of the mountain”.

The Tests of Longevity
The test of longevity comes when you feel like you’ve waited long enough. Here are some of the warning signs… Discouragement, Disappointment, Hopelessness and the big one… Isolation. Isolation is dangerous. Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 says that “Two are better than one… If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” It’s so much easier to give up when you’re all alone. These are the times we really need one another.

Passing the Test
Don’t quit, stay until God says go. Don’t quit just because it’s hard. Of course it hard, great things and new things always are. Stay until God sets you on a new path. I believe the future is awesome and each of us will have a very significant role to play if… We don’t look for a short cut, we don’t look for an easy way out and we don’t quit.

For so many it’s already been a long hard road. If this is you take inspiration from Philippians 3:13-14

“…one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus”.

Father have mercy on us. Set us free from the past. Give us eyes to see the goal, our destinies in Christ. Grant us the grace we need to pass these tests. Pour out your Spirit upon us so that we do not grow weary in doing good. Make us Humble and make us Loyal for as long as it takes. Amen.

© Tom Zawacki 2007

Art Credit: Longevity by Jane Bellows