Week 2 | You Can Do Hard Things

When I was in college, my head coach's big thing was 'Be Tough.' He would say that everybody was talented, and everybody had skills, but two things that separated the good from the great were consistency and toughness.

We would run timed miles every week, not because they were great for basketball conditioning, but because they were great for making us tough.

When you are on a track running a timed mile, it is you verse yourself. Every week, he would lower our time based on how we did, so each week we had to beat ourselves.

By the end of the season, I was more mentally tough than I had ever been because I had to be to keep going.

It was one of the hardest experiences of my life, but it was one of the most important experiences in my life. My college coach is the one who taught me that I had the ability to do hard things.

That is grit - the ability to do hard things.

The sports world is full of stories of grit. One of my favorite grit stories is the story of Olympic track athlete Wilma Rudolph. Wilma Rudolph was born as the 20th of 22 children in Tennessee. She was a sickly child who was forced to wear a brace on her leg after suffering from the poliovirus and was told that she would never walk again. She learned how to walk again, and by the age of 12, she started showing talent as a sprinter. At only 16 years old, she made her Olympic debut at the 1956 Melbourne Games and won a bronze medal.

She never quit and lived the rest of her life as an Olympian.

Noah's story in the Bible is one of the earliest stories of grit. By the time Noah was beginning his family, the world was full of wicked people with evil thoughts. It had gotten so bad that God decided to flood the world and start again. God saw that Noah was good and righteous, so he decided to save him and start fresh with Noah and his family.

We have all had to deal with peer pressure, so we know that being able to stand firm in your faith among the evil and wicked shows tremendous grit and perseverance.

God told Noah to build an ark and to bring a pair of every animal and bird. It took him years to build the ark, and it took years before God fulfilled his promise and brought the flood. Imagine being the only person of faith in the world, you build an ark, and it takes years, and years, and years for the flood to come? It would be easy to give up on yourself and your faith, but Noah's grit and faith wouldn't allow him to give up.

Eventually, the flood came and Noah's faith and grit were rewarded.

The ultimate story of grit is Jesus. Jesus left heaven to come to live the human experience. He saw firsthand how difficult it is to stay true to God and yourself on earth. He was talked about, made fun of, beaten, and hung on the cross for what he believed in and for what is right. But Jesus never quit. Jesus said, "In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world (John 16:33)."

Trials and suffering will come - I experienced both on that track running timed miles - but blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him (James 1:2). As hard as it is, try to find the glory in your sufferings because suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope (Romans 5:3-4).

That last verse reminds me of a story about my daughter and me. I coach her, and I am hard on her. One day I told her that I was proud of her and that I am hard on her because I see potential in her. She told me that she thought that I hated her. 

I told her to listen to what I am saying and not how I say it, and that she should be more worried if I wasn't being hard on her because that would mean I lost faith in her. I told her that having a tough coach is a blessing because they will teach you how to have grit, and the grit you gain from them will build your character.

God gave us all the ability to do hard things, and he doesn't give us more than we can handle. Whatever situation we are in and whatever we are going through, God will give us what we need to overcome it.

Keep your faith, keep going, and have grit.

THIS WEEK

1 - When you are going through something tough, remember that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope (Romans 5:3-4).

2 - Doing hard things become a little easier when we have someone supporting us. Find people who need help, and find ways to serve and bless them.

3 - One of the best things that we can do is meditate and think about Bible verses. Every time you meditate on a message, it gives you a greater strength to be able to do the message. Below are 6 Bible verses that you can use to help you get through tough times.

KEY BIBLE VERSES

1 - In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.
- John 16:33

2 - Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
- James 1:2

3 - We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.
- Romans 5:3-4

4 -  Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
- 2 Chronicles 20:17

5 - Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
- Colossians 3:2

6 - And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
- Galatians 6:9