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Rocks Or Beaches?


Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3-5) 

This is one of those passages that tempts us to say, “Whoa! Wait a minute, there, Paul!” Should the people of Houston, Florida, and Puerto Rico glory in the destruction and losses they’ve endured? Should those who face poverty every day break out their tambourines? Should kids, and the parents of kids with Downs’ Syndrome or Autism celebrate? Are you crazy?
If you have peace with God, then the things that you face aren’t an attack, no matter how tough they seem. They may be discipline, but the goal of discipline is development, not destruction. It isn’t easy to think this the peace way. My automatic response when things don’t go my way is “What did I do wrong?” I need to change it to “What is God trying to teach me?”
Paul tells us that one of the things that suffering produces is perseverance. Where I grew up, there is a sandy peninsula out into Lake Erie. While the people of Erie would prefer milder temperatures, winters like 2016-2017 damage the spit of sand. The only reason it’s still there is because every year, Pennsylvania spends lots of money trucking in sand to build it back up. Presque Isle doesn’t have endurance. If our coast were like the coast of Maine where I saw on boulders and watched the tide pound in, it would have endurance.
Endurance means keeping on keeping on when keeping on keeping on is hard. Endurance also means survival. Most of us think that having love for someone is a good thing. How much good is “sandy” love that disappears with the first storm? Is “sandy” joy enough? Would peace that disappears with a storm be worth having? Is patience that disintegrates under pressure patience? If your kindness or goodness crumble to pieces the moment it’s pressured, are you kind or good? I can tell you, sandy self-control is like a backbone of Jell-O: useless. When it comes to making a person into a person of character, perseverance is the point, and perseverance doesn’t develop in a “perfect” world. The storms of life perfect perseverance. What’s more, it is as we develop the proven character that we develop hope, because we learn that we can not only endure, but become better through the storms.

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