Pursueing Perseverance - James 1

² Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters,^[a] whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

James 1:2-4

As I was considering the approaching end of term and the students who are finishing exams, I could not help but think of the element of discipline built into  our educational process. In many ways, our degrees are as much a testament to our perseverance as they are to our mental prowess. While no one would deny that the content of our learning is important, it also needs to be stated that so too is the process of learning. When I think back to my undergrad years, and having to run the gauntlet of exams, tests, labs and papers, I realized that it had somehow changed my character. I had absorbed something that transcended what  I actually learned. My degree in Range and Wildlife management actually prepared me for seminary in ways I could not have predicted.

Persistence… Steadfastness… Forbearance… Perseverance... Endurance… Tenacity

This is a word grouping familiar to the generations that preceded mine. For my generation ( Boomers) and those following, increasingly less so…

We collectively are the generation of the microwave, the channel changer and the disposable razor.

Microwave?  Do you know they have now perfected the microwave pizza so that you only have to wait 7 minutes rather than a mind numbing 22 minutes. However, what you get in convenience and instantaneity you lose in quality. Nothing replaces the process of cooking with heat.  

The channel changer? Indeed, we have a collective case of low grade ADD. With the click of a mouse or the push of a button, we can ‘move on’, and not have to endure what we don’t want to. 

The Disposable razor?. We expect  short shelf lives. We factor in a built in obsolescence. This is true for relationships, or circumstances. You don’t like something (one) – well, you know what to do….

The word used for perserverance in the above text is a compound word in the original language.  Simply, it combines  ‘hupo’, which means ‘under’, with ‘mene’ -which means ‘remain’. While I am very aware that a word is not simply the sum of its parts (etc), this still has a message for us. Quite simply, it refers to “remaining under”. It means staying the course until the course has done its work.  And it has work to do that is deeper than we know.  While James is referring to ‘diverse trials’, the principle holds true across the board.

If there are still students around to read this, let me encourage you to “let perseverance finish its work”. Be encouraged that you are growing in ways you may not be aware of.

And let me express the sentiments of the entire school in wishing you a rewarding and refreshing summer.