Perseverance is a common thread down through history among men and women who stood on the truth, and made a difference. Their story has been passed down, books have been written, and movies created about some of them. There are untold numbers of nameless people we will never hear about. They had to face the reality of people’s freedom to make choices and the consequences that followed. We see them as heroic in the face of defeats and victories because they didn’t give up.

We need hope to persevere. And we need gratitude to stay focused on who or what we put our hope in. We could never count all the ways God has blessed us and blessed this nation. Even the fact that “in Him we live and move and have our being” (Acts 17:28) is more than enough to live in awe and wonder.

God blessed His people by fulfilling His word to them, miraculously setting them free from captivity in Babylon. On their return home, they began to rebuild the Temple in honor of Him. Then they simply gave up. 

The prophet Haggai told them: “Look at what’s happening to you! You have planted much but harvested little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!” (Haggai 1:5-6).

Then the Lord sparked the enthusiasm of the leaders to reengage the rebuilding of the Temple with these words of hope: “The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies” (2:9).

When the foundation of the Temple was laid, He spoke again: “Think carefully. I am giving you a promise now while the seed is still in the barn. You have not yet harvested your grain, and your grapevines, fig trees, pomegranates, and olive trees have not yet produced their crops. But from this day onward I will bless you” (2:18-19).

There is no lasting satisfaction in life and living apart from placing our hope in Him. What we have is never enough and it becomes easier to give up when our hope is misplaced. It is in these times that God invites us to a reset. Each day we pray that His plans and purposes and blessings will be fulfilled in our generation and beyond (Acts 13:36).