The Joy of the Prize

This moment in time feels like one of those challenging moments. You know, those times in your life when things feel overwhelming. I remember last year around this time I had an especially challenging season as well. One scripture that I read during that period which helped me was Hebrews 12, particularly verses 1-13. It really hit the nail on the head. A few things I've been reading lately have also spoken about endurance. 

To be honest, sometimes I really don't want to read such things, especially in the midst of a difficult period. I don't want to hear that I have to endure anything. I don't want to have to deal with anything. I just want them to go away. Unfortunately, most things cannot be avoided, unless of course you plan to quit. 

I was thinking one morning how I really could just quit. I thought about my husband and how he sometimes has even more of a reason to quit. He is truly a warrior though. In the short time that he has been working at his workplace, many have come and gone. I too have seen the same. 

The joy of the prize however, is good motivation. Thinking about how I could choose to quit but have chosen to bear it, gives me a sense of pride and accomplishment. The power of God is made manifest in my life as I continue to fight the good fight. And then there are moments where I get to experience the joy of the prize such as when I meet students I have taught. 

It puts a smile on my face when I see students I've taught all grown up. Whether it is an elementary school kid now turned high school student or a junior high school student now turned college university student. I feel a sense of pride. And yes, I feel even prouder when they remember me and greet me. There is a boy who I taught in junior high school in the first year that I came to Japan. He's always glad when we happen to meet. We sometimes meet on the bus. I saw him the other morning. He wasn't in his school uniform. He had graduated from high school. I asked him his age. He's now 19 years old. He probably was 13 or 14 when I first taught him. 

I feel good because it's a symbol of how far I've come and how I have endured. It gives me reason to say thank You Lord for having kept me. 

I'll close with the Japanese version of the song, "Hold Me Close". Enjoy! 

Why is this happening to me?

When the jailer, startled out of his sleep, saw that the prison doors were open, he drew his sword and was on the point of killing himself, because he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. (Acts 16:27 AMP)

I remember what my Pastor here said about a missionary being sick; they all prayed and prayed but nothing changed. She had to be hospitalized. While they visited her, there was a man who was also admitted to the hospital who saw them and asked them to come and visit him, too. When the woman was released, they still visited the man. He later became saved. A family member of the man was also saved. Another man who was staying in the same room told them, "Don't just pray for him. Pray for me, too." He and another family member also got saved. 

God used a negative situation - sickness - for His glory. He did the same in the case of Paul and Silas. The keeper of the prison got saved; he and his family. 

There are some situations that I really don't like. One of them is when I have 6 classes at elementary school. It can get pretty exhausting. (I intend to from now on however, speak those things that be not as though they were. Therefore, instead of talking about how exhausting it is, I'm going to start saying, "Nothing is too much for me. I run and never get weary. I walk and do not faint."). But I wonder what God would like to do through these uncomfortable situations. 

Paul and Silas prayed and sang praises. They got a breakthrough - literally! And it set the scene for God to work. It's good to remember these scriptures in tough times. Instead of whining and feeling sorry for myself, I need to praise and pray.