SWHW Bible Reading Plan: July 2021Sample

Top Takeaway from Malinda Fuller: 

Perseverance isn't a fun topic to talk about. We aren't a society that excitedly embraces difficult tasks that may require us to work hard for long periods with little gain. We like the quick fix, the simple solution, the Amazon Prime options, the hacks that make life easy and pain-free. And yet, we read about so many examples of those who were faithful to Jesus, first-century believers who "stood their ground in the face of suffering." 

That's why the author of Hebrews can humbly say, "but we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved" (Hebrews 10:39).

Those who have faith and are saved, that's who we want to be.

Those who do not shrink back and are destroyed, that's where we want to be found.

But what did it look like for them to "stand their ground"? The list is difficult:

"Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions” (Hebrews 10:33-34).

Publicly exposed to insult and persecution.

Suffered along with those in prison.

Joyfully accepted the confiscation of property.

This isn't the list most of us would rush to be first in line for.

Yet, even with all of this camaraderie and shared experiences, they still forgot at times they were stronger together. That's why a few verses earlier, the readers of this letter were reminded, "Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another" (Hebrews 10:23-25).

Spur one another toward love and good deeds.

Meet with believers.

Encourage one another.

This is what we want to be a part of, or--what we want others to do for us. We want to feel encouraged and spurred on in what we are doing. But, for that to happen, we have to show up too.

The early church persevered because they stood their ground together. They understood they needed the encouragement and spurring of other believers. There was power in their community. 

This is something we have recently become intimately aware of in the past year--that isolation is not how God intended for us to live. We can withstand more if we aren't trying to do it alone. "We" is better than "me."

Whom are you meeting with?



Who is spurring you on?



Whom are you "standing your ground" next to?



Who is sympathizing with you?



Whom are you suffering alongside?



Who is encouraging you?



Who are you encouraging?

Father, thank You for reminding us over and over that we are better together. Thank You for giving us the ability to persevere by often sending others to stand with us in our suffering. Please give me the courage to show up for others--to step out of what's comfortable for me and to sympathize, encourage, and spur on someone else. Remind me of "those earlier days" when I first encountered You and had such passion and determination; rekindle that fire if it has dwindled, and give me a fresh perspective of what it means to be in community with others. I do not want to be one of those who "shrinks back and is destroyed, but one who believes and is saved."  Amen.