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Frank Viola | Beyond Evangelical
Official Blog of Author & Speaker Frank Viola. Digging below the surface and moving beyond the shallows in today's Christianity.
Whatever Happened to Perseverance?
There Must Be More
Thanks for this post Frank. I needed it. I came to my current church nearly 12 years ago. It had nearly closed. But, because of other’s perserverence and, I guess, my own as well, the church is thriving. It is not large but it has thrived in ways that no one would have guessed in 2000. Thank you!
My story accounts for both a stubborn resistance to quit something I knew I should, as well as an example of how I was able to persevere to find God’s blessing.
Let me just say 2003 was a rough year for me. Niavely, I walked out of a job in late 2002 angry at my soon-to-be former employer with an intent to pursue a new career as a Over-The-Road truck driver. Spending long weeks away from my family and struggling to make ends meet, I stubbornly refused to consider any new positions with companies in my old career.
One recruiter began calling the house while I was away one time and my wife suggested I consider it. I refused. I was determined to make it work. Fortunately God would not let this recruiter give up, and later she told me she just had this feeling about me for this job.
Finally, I consented to my wife and agreed to meet for an interview. The new job was tailor made for my experience and background, and I could not resist the idea that God was sending me an opportunity. And that idea of knowing God’s will carried me through.
I stayed with that company through some very rough times. I often was discouraged or frustrated. Work was often difficult and the hours I put in were long. But the funny thing was my former “wandering in the wilderness” as an OTR driver made these long hours seem like child’s play. My wife was grateful to have me home in the evening, whether it was after 5 or not. We had realized there are a lot of families out there that work a lot harder to make a living.
I stayed with that company nine years and was promoted three times making twice my original pay when I started. And what carried me through the entire time was the sense of God’s calling me to that place and the remembrance of how difficult it had been before.
When I left that job as manager my team all dressed in black as a token of their sadness in seeing me leave. It was a fine tribute. I love those people.
After 14 years in an organization that was heavily involved in the prophetic movement my wife and I discovered there must be something more. We were heavily involved in anything from praise and worship, youth, evangelism and even ordained as evangelist. Many might regret that time and say it was wasted because it was a type of institutional church but I would have to disagree. The last 3 years were very difficult for me as I felt the tug of Christ to move on, yet I resisted for all the wrong reasons. Father has made my journey work for good.
I am so thankful we stayed because I learned so much about hearing from Father. I also now have a better understanding of how people feel and the struggles they go through when they realize that it is time for change. I see more clearly the bondage I came out of . I now have a great appreciation for freedom. I could go on, and on, and on of the wonderful things Father has shown me. I really love the people I related to in that organization and still have a great relationship with them.
I am not suggesting that someone stay and go against God to learn a lesson. However I want people to know that Father really does have His hand on you in the journey and that His divine intervention will be glorious. I am greatful for the gatherings we have now. Some have been great some have been difficult but through it all I love the freedom.
Frank,
I am standing in that very place right now. I have been servant-leading the church I am currently at for the last eight years. I believe that I have demonstrated resolute perseverance. Yet, there is still not the breakthrough we have been believing and watching for–the breakthrough that the Lord desires. We continue to hit a lid. In fact, my leadership is now being met with resistance, opposition, and attack.
I feel that I have done all within my capacity to do and taken this congregation as far as I can take them. In my own heart, I am slowly resolving that, perhaps, my time here is done and it is time to let things go, not just for my sake or that of my family, but for the church’s sake…for the city’s sake.
I have begun to look for that next door of great and effective ministry. I have even been looking outside the church and in the marketplace. Nothing has yet opened. I am not in a hurry. Nor am I unwilling to take a step of faith into “nothing”. Over my twenty-plus years of vocational church ministry, with my family, I have done that before in response to the Lord’s leading. I certainly don’t want to outstay my time here, but I also don’t want to presume upon the Lord on the basis of, “Well, that’s how the Lord led us back here, I guess He must be leading us that way again.” So, I continue to stand–persevere–waiting, and holding-fast to Him in this hard place.
My wife and I were just starting a homeless ministry. We had met a few homeless men and women, started meeting with them once a week in a downtown parking lot.
We decided God wanted us to expand the weekly feeding and fellowship into a Bible study. With much trepidation, fearing we might offend our new-found friends, we announced the Bible study a week in advance.
The next Thursday arrived and we set up chairs in the parking lot. There was NOBODY there. We kind of looked at each other and shrugged. Maybe not God’s will? I took our youngest son to the bathroom and I remember thinking out loud: “Well, God, it’s not looking good. But I was planning on being here until 8:00, so if it’s all the same to You, that’s what I’ll do.”
By the time I got back outside, there was a homeless person in all 12 chairs (yes, 12). And they were starting to read the Bible passage we’d printed out.
We continued to hold that Bible study for seven years, every week. The miracles we witnessed are too numerous for me to recall, let alone recount. People saved, homeless coming to our church, mingling with parishioners at our home. Men and women reunited with family, finding housing and jobs, or just staying in the woods and finding sobriety — and a mission of their own.
I used to say God can’t bless the step you won’t take. Now I have an addendum: God can’t bless what you won’t let go of.
Awesome example! I hope others read your story.
Al, I too am grateful that you persisted in your ministry to street people. I have a son who has mental health problems and has been on and off the street several times. Thank God He raises people who are gifted in this area of ministry. God bless!
As a young Christian wanting to go to the mission field I struggled with the concept of God’s Will for my life. Luckily I had a great Christian teacher (was a normal public school in SA) who told me that all I had to do was read the Bible more often. Everbody else gave me the advice about the open doors – if it is open, then it is God’s Will, if not, then not. At first my teacher’s advice seemed sort of stupid, because I read the Bible from beginning to end already 3 times before I was 15 (when I was saved by God). But then I learnt that in fact I didn’t know it yet. And I really started reading/studying it. One thing I found was perserverance, something I would later on really need a lot on the mission field in Siberia.
Every year before our very important summer camps we would get problems, and every year it seemed as if we would not make it, but every year we did make it. The thing is these problems became bigger and bigger, but never to big to handle. Then I really learnt that it isn’t about open doors, but God putting obstacles in our path to test us, seeing if we would trust Him even when everything seems as dark as night. Was I willing to continue trusting in Him even when everything looks impossible?
Honestly a few times I prayed and asked the Lord for just one year of having it easy, but looking back at all the spiritual growth, I wouldn’t have it anyway else. He is infinite more wise than I am; He loves me and cares for me. By His Grace the words of the Bible stopped being words and became reality. Without perservering I would have never experienced this.
At the moment I am experiencing a lot of problems again, but if somebody asks me how I am, I can only say that life is fantastic, because God is far above what we can imagine. With such a God no problem can be to big. So yes, perservere, because then your eyes open just so much wider to see Him.
At the age of 20, I was working for a large, well known telecommunications company. It was more out of necessity than anything else. I despised the 9 to 5, corporate thing. Six months into it, due to a human resources issue (family member joined the group) I was moved to another position within the same company. I hated it. I hated the corporate atmosphere, I hated the work I was doing, I hated how technical and boring certain aspects of it were.
Every spare moment I had – just to escape – I was reading a book or an article online (something I’m not proud of, now). Over the years, however, I continued to grow in my relationship in the Lord. One day, when I was feeling sorry for myself, He spoke to me out of Phillipians 2 about grumbling, and complaining, and being negative. He asked me to change my attitude, so I decided it was probably a good idea.
It took some time, but suddenly, I noticed that my performance shot through the roof. It’s amazing how much staying off of Facebook and not stealing minutes on your breaks does that! Things started to go better.
Then layoffs hit. One wave, two waves, three waves. I barely survived. I was thinking about going to a different company. My wife and I were praying, and she felt the Lord wanted me to stay. Out of a desire to be obedient, I did.
Then one day, the unthinkable happened. The company was going to outsource some of its work, and my boss wanted me to travel internationally to assist. I did. And for the first time in my life, I got to travel overseas – something I had wanted to do for a long, long time.
Today, nearly two years later, I live in New Delhi, India. An amazing opportunity I would have missed if I had quit! I’m still riding this roller-coaster. I find that more obedient I am to the Lord, the better my life gets. I know that it doesn’t work out this way for everyone, not by a long shot. But this is what the Lord has done for me. There are good days and bad days, sure, but when I look at the big picture I am taken aback by how blessed I am.
After college, I moved back home to help my parents with a family business that they were struggling with, it was supposed to be a temporary situation, 1 year turned into 5.
They bought another business, I asked them not to and told them I did not want to help them with it, they needed help, I ended up running it for the next 14 years. There were many times that I wanted to give up and find a job elsewhere, but knew that I needed to be here or the business would not make it.
A couple of years ago, I finally surrendered everything to the Lord. I had been raised in “church” and “knew” the Lord, however I had been saying “Your will be done” with my mouth, but not with my heart or my actions.
My relationship improved with my heavenly Father and my earthly father over the last couple years, after I stopped fighting the Lord and His plans for me. In June of last year, someone made an offer and bought the second business that I had run for the last 14 years, I spent the rest of the year helping my dad and re-learning the other business that we still owned.
My dad died suddenly on December 31st. Our last 6 months together prepared me to step in and take over everything. Looking back over they years, especially on the times I wanted to leave and go my own way, I can see the Lord’s hand on my life and am so glad that I persevered.
Five years after I joined my church we hit a dry spell. Many people left during that time, but I stayed, even though I was tempted to leave too because some of my friends were leaving. I’m glad I stayed because after the spell ended we had the greatest time in the church I ever experienced. I’m in my 30s and people in my generation don’t know anything about persevering. Thanks for this post.
I have spent my life in Protestant Sacramental Churches. My wife an I have been in the same one for seven years. As I became aware of the lack of teaching and practice regarding Agape love, I thought about looking around for a fellowship where that was a key. There has been some suffering and perseverence, but I have been witnessing internally and feeling that I am in the right place. In my case, I thought I was staying to serve/encourage others, but I think God has also been using this to “complete/perfect” my ability to agape. Bob
While I wasn’t exactly ever tempted to give up on it, I persevered through a job during seminary that involved 40+ hours of stressful work in a data processing center each week with deadlines to meet every morning. We processed the daily records and accounts for 20+ banks and had to have everything ready for the couriers to pick up every morning before 6:00. I started out on the bottom end of the totem pole as a computer operator trainee and through endurance and perseverance, wound up ten years later as the production manager over all three shifts. To clarify, I pursued both an M.Div and a Ph.D while in seminary, working 2nd shift (4:30 p.m. until 1:00 a.m.) for many years before shifting to a 9:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. night shift manager role for a few more years. Finally, when I was at the stage of working on a dissertation, I was able to shift to days and enjoy a more normal lifestyle with my wife and two young boys at that time. God graciously met our needs–even above and beyond the basics–during those stress-filled years. The experiences gained from that job also enabled me to better empathize with seminary students that I taught for many years in an international setting who also struggled to balance studies, work, ministry, and family life.
Nearly twelve years ago, the bottom fell out of our plans, and I was suddenly forced to find a job to support my wife and children. The Lord was very gracious in guiding me to a job that matched my skills, but it has never been something that really enthused me. For the last 11½ years I’ve been in this job simply because I knew that’s where the Lord wanted me to stay. I am thankful that I was obedient because I – and my wife 🙂 – can see how my character has been forged through persevering in the midst of the various disappointments, stresses and strains.
Ironically (for this post), the Lord is moving me into a new situation next month and I’ll be leaving this job to pursue something that has a much deeper resonance in my soul. I do so with great gratitude for the privilege of being allowed to do this (and aware that being in a pleasant place may make it harder for growing the fruit the Lord desires).
What a great post! I’m 34 and I started a business with a friend in my 20s. After four years, I wanted to give up because we weren’t getting along and the business was having problems, but deep down I knew I should give it longer. I’m so happy I did. During that year the business took off, we worked our problems out and now my friend and I are super close. If I would have given up I would have lost a great friend and an awesome business. So many of my friends give up way too easy. Today’s blog is really needed.
Frank, I knew my now-wife all through college. We worked alongside one another at church, teaching and mentoring in the youth group. For many months, she said no to my every advance.
Board games with friends? No thanks. Go get coffee? Sorry, I’m busy. Country-western dance lessons? Sorry, I have other plans.
After three years of ministering at that church, she and I both moved on. I traveled across the country and enrolled in law school. She moved to a different state and began grad school. We stopped talking.
After more than a year with no contact, I emailed her again out of the blue. Things were friendly but brief. But that one email turned into more. Eventually we were emailing every day. Then we started talking over the phone.
Then I took the big step. I asked if I could come visit. She said yes! I packed my bags, flew to her, and the rest is history.
Now we’re about to celebrate our first wedding anniversary, and I am deeply thankful that God taught me persistence in pursuing my now-wife. Even today, that training pays off, as God reminds me to always pursue my wife, to draw her out and know her heart.