January 3, 2005

[Rev. Doc]

Never Give Up

"You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised."
Hebrews 10:36

As M. Dunham wrote, "Sir Edmund Hilary was the first person to conquer Mt. Everest. The first time he tried, he failed. He was knighted by the Queen of England, and at the gala occasion, on the wall behind the head table, was a huge picture of Mt. Everest. The people gave him a standing ovation for even daring to attempt the climb. When they ceased applauding, Hilary turned his back to the audience, faced that picture and said, "Mt. Everest, you have defeated me once and you might defeat me again. But I'm coming back again and again, and I'm going to win because you can't get any bigger, Mt. Everest, and I can."

Great attitude! What a difference it would make if we felt the same when we face the mountains in our lives. The reality of life is that we learn more through our failures than we do through our successes.

Successes are satisfying and they are important to keep us encouraged. However, failure is our greatest teacher. This is because in every failure there is the opportunity to learn, to grow, and to become stronger, better persons. And this is what God wants for each of us–not to beat ourselves up but to grow!

Whatever mountain you are facing at this time of your life–large or small–remember God is right there with you. If anything is his will for you, you know that with his help you, too, can say to your mountain, "You have defeated me once and you might defeat me again. But I'm coming back again and again, and I'm going to win because you can't get any bigger and I can. Plus God is on my side to help me."

Prayer: Ask the Lord to help you have a positive attitude, even in the midst of difficulties.

"Notice the difference between what happens when a man says to himself, "I have failed three times," and what happens when he says, "I am a failure."
~S.I. Hayakawa.

[Kura Ookami]

I think we can all use this message. It reminds me of something Hotomi says in Escaflowne too on this very subject. It just shows that God can use anything at all to teach us lessons that we need to learn.

"You know people have an amazing ability. That's right. My grandmother told me all about it. You should keep thinking "I wish I were--" or "I want to be--" If you say those things youre wishes will come true. It's true don't you think. If you keep thinking "I wish i were--" then you'll work towards that goal, then you'll try your hardest, but if you tell yourself "It's hopeless " or " I can't do it" or "my dreams will never come true" then that's what's going to happen. If you wish hard enough then that wish will eventually reach the stars and they'll give you the last of their power. The power of the stars."