If God has given you a promise, hang on to it with bulldog tenacity! Don’t let go …

“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap,

if we do not give up.” Galatians 6:9 ESV

“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer.”

Romans 12:12 ESV

“The nose of the bulldog is slanted backwards so he can continue to breathe

without letting go.”  Winston Churchill

So how are you doing? A bit out of breath? Hounded by circumstances that have given you a serious case of claustrophobia? Feeling like if something doesn’t break for you soon … you will just go ahead and break instead?

Life has ways of throwing things at us not expected, and definitely not in the volume they come at us. Whether you label them as ‘sufferings’ (Romans 5:3-5), ‘trials’ (James 1:2-4), or the tribulations in Romans 12:12 above, they have similar impacts on our lives. We groan under their weight, wonder where they came from and why, and ask the Father to help us get rid of them.

And God has promised his help and assistance in these storms. He does the heavy lifting and asks us only to trust him while exhibiting patience and a quiet heart.

And that’s where Winston Churchill’s statement comes in. We must continue to breathe without letting go of the promises. God would say to us that this is not the time for giving up, going back, relinquishing the ground we have covered. This is the proper time for hanging on for dear life, not letting go of the promises, not losing sight of the victories that await us.

Ask the Father to personalize these Scriptures until they feel like you own them. Ask Him for perseverance and trust that will take you the distance … all the way to the finish line.

“More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,

 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not

put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through

the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5 ESV

“Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know

that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its

full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4 ESV

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside

every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race

 that is set before us, …” Hebrews 12:1 ESV