Many times prayer would have been answered had we held on just a little longer, if we hadn't let discouragement make us give up before we had prayed through to victory. It was not that God has refused us the answer, but we gave up before the answer came!
There is a fixed determination in real faith that stands this test of waiting, and there are those like Jacob of old who say, "I'll not let thee go unless thou dost bless me, Lord!" And they get down to wrestling in prayer, and search their hearts to see if they're meeting God's conditions. And they search God's written Word, until their faith is strengthened, and they hold on and press on, regardless of every obstacle, with a dogged determination that won't be denied.
And they don't heed discouragement and weariness, but they just fight a little longer and just hold on a little longer. It's this "holding on a little longer" that makes the difference in how some people get answers to prayer and some do not. It's this "a little longer" spirit, that fights on regardless of appearances or discouraging words. It isn't that their battle is any less severe than ours, but they wouldn't stop fighting, they just would not give up or give in to the enemy.
The Duke of Wellington who conquered Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, said it wasn't that British soldiers were braver than French soldiers, but that they could be brave five minutes longer. The victory was determined by holding on a little longer.
Anything wonderful can happen in that little margin of time when you don't give up but keep on believing and keep on praying. Robert Browning said as he faced death, "One fight more, the best and the last!"
If we would sometimes just put up one fight more against the Enemy who's trying to defeat us and discourage us, and just hold on the five minutes longer! Dr. Frederick Harris described this spirit in these words: "Often the deciding issue in any contest is not when one is outnumbered, but where and when one stops fighting.
"The final score is determined by a struggle that is pushed for just five minutes longer, to be sure in that five minutes you give God a chance rather than accept defeat. It's a decision, just a venture to hold on in spite of appearances and consequences."
There is a fixed determination in real faith that stands this test of waiting, and there are those like Jacob of old who say, "I'll not let thee go unless thou dost bless me, Lord!" And they get down to wrestling in prayer, and search their hearts to see if they're meeting God's conditions. And they search God's written Word, until their faith is strengthened, and they hold on and press on, regardless of every obstacle, with a dogged determination that won't be denied.
And they don't heed discouragement and weariness, but they just fight a little longer and just hold on a little longer. It's this "holding on a little longer" that makes the difference in how some people get answers to prayer and some do not. It's this "a little longer" spirit, that fights on regardless of appearances or discouraging words. It isn't that their battle is any less severe than ours, but they wouldn't stop fighting, they just would not give up or give in to the enemy.
The Duke of Wellington who conquered Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo, said it wasn't that British soldiers were braver than French soldiers, but that they could be brave five minutes longer. The victory was determined by holding on a little longer.
Anything wonderful can happen in that little margin of time when you don't give up but keep on believing and keep on praying. Robert Browning said as he faced death, "One fight more, the best and the last!"
If we would sometimes just put up one fight more against the Enemy who's trying to defeat us and discourage us, and just hold on the five minutes longer! Dr. Frederick Harris described this spirit in these words: "Often the deciding issue in any contest is not when one is outnumbered, but where and when one stops fighting.
"The final score is determined by a struggle that is pushed for just five minutes longer, to be sure in that five minutes you give God a chance rather than accept defeat. It's a decision, just a venture to hold on in spite of appearances and consequences."
posted by Dove Wings at 11:05 PM
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