Perserverance...

I've been thinking about it a lot lately for many reasons. God has really been "speaking" to me lately in my devotion times. This devotion was really encouraging to me & I hope it is to you as well. It's from "Quiet Moments With God" for Couples by Honor Books.

"The story is told of a diamond prospector in Venezuela named Rafael Solano. He was one of many impoverished natives & fortune seekers who came to sift through the rocks of a dried up riverbed reputed to have diamonds. No one, however, had any luck for some time in finding any diamonds in the sand & pebbles. One by one, those who came left the site-their dreams shattered, & their bodies drained.

Discouraged & exhausted, Solano had just about decided it was time for him to give up too. He had nothing to show for months of hard work. Then he stooped down one last time & scooped up a handful of pebbles, if only so he could say he had personally inspected every pebble in his claim. From the pebbles in his hand, he pulled out one that seemed a little different. He weighed it in his other hand. It seemed heavy. He measured it & weighed it on a scale. Could it be?

Sure enough, Solano had found a diamond in the rough! New York jewerly dealer Harry Winston paid Solano $200,000 for that stone. When it was cut & polished, it became known as the Liberator, & it is considered the largest & purest unmined diamond in the world.

You may have been plugging away at a project for weeks, even months or years, without seeing much progress. Today may be the day. Don't give up! The Scriptures are filled with examples of men & women who, on the verge of disaster or failure, experienced God's creative work in their lives. Remind yourself of the following things:

*** God's Word is true.
*** God can part the sea.
*** God can heal the incurable.
*** God can provide water from a rock & manna from the heavens.
*** God can conquer your enemies.
*** God can still deliver from the fiery furnace & the lion's den.

Persevere in what He has asked you to do today because your rewards will be more than you can think or imagine!"

"Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world." Revelation 3:10

Keep on keeping on!!! :o)