Enduring to the end

Lately the thoughts

"Enduring to the end"

have been running through my mind.

What does that really mean?

What does that entail?

The end--meaning the end of our life?
or maybe just the end of our trial.

All of us have trials in our lives
Some are by our own making,
and then others are given to us,
to help refine us.
Those are the trials that really test our faith.
Test our endurance.
We have been told that these trials
are for our own good.
Somehow it doesn't always feel like it at the time.

As we go through different trials in our lives
Some pass quickly
While others we really have to endure.
Those are the trials
that we wish we had a time frame on
or maybe a magic eight ball
that we could shake--
and find out the exact date
or even a close approximate
of when our enduring will end.

Somehow we think we could handle them better
if we knew when it would be over
or what the outcome would be.
Would we really be enduring
if we knew the exact time and date our trial would end...
or would we just be waiting our time out
looking to the end
and not living in the moment.

I think that is where the enduring comes in.
It is in those daily trials
or the enduring
that we learn the lessons we need.

Years ago
when we were in the midst of unemployment
I remember just wanting to know
when it was going to end.
Wanting to know
what lessons i was supposed to learn
so i could get them learned and move on.
We endured a year of not knowing
and in that year
we were blessed immensely.

Blessed in many ways
that we would never would have been
if we had not been enduring our trial.
It is during those trials
when our faith is tested
that we draw closer to the lord--
we are blessed for our enduring--
even when we don't know how long it will be for.

And for those of us
who's lives are going well these days
we need to remember to include those
who are enduring in our prayers--
that they will have the strength
physical,spiritual as well as emotional
to endure their test.
Let them know that they are not enduring on their own.
We are all in this together--
it is up to us to endure each others burdens.
I know we will be blessed for our efforts....