How to Prevail

How Can I Win When I Can Barely Hang On?

I had been pregnant for a day shy of 43 weeks. That’s three weeks overdue. When the decision was finally made to induce labor, I felt a mix of joyful relief and apprehension. And both feelings were justified. I was so excited to meet this new little one, to hold her in my aching arms at last and, oh my goodness, what a joy that was!

The apprehension was also justified, though I didn’t know it yet. My body didn’t respond normally to the Pitocin, the drug used to induce labor. Instead of the normal build up and let down of contractions, my body went into an endless contraction that only worsened and never let up. “Hyper-contractions,” they told me with an unhelpful shrug.

Whereas women giving birth usually endure the “transition” phase of childbirth (the most difficult part) for between 30 minutes and 2 hours, hour after hour passed by without a break until I looked up at my sweet husband and in all seriousness said, “I’m gonna go home now. You finish up here.” He stared at me blankly as the ridiculousness of my statement slowly dawned on me and I regretfully acknowledged the impossibility of what I was proposing with a moan of anguished surrender.

(Just so you know, I did give birth safely and beautifully.)

I meant it though! I was done! I had given all I could, and I didn’t think there was an ounce of endurance left in me.

But let’s suspend logic for one second and imagine that I could, in fact, go home at that point, just call it quits, make labor end, let my little one just live inside me. How I would have missed out, right?

How many times I have been tempted to do that in my life! I’ve been tempted to walk out on people, on goals, on my calling. Just because I’m still here, still plugging away at things, doesn’t mean I haven’t been tempted to quit on a regular basis. Sometimes my continued efforts in the face of opposition can feel like failure.

What does it mean to prevail? Sometimes we think it is a big win over a big challenge. What if there’s more to prevailing? What if you could win your battle even when you don’t feel that you have strength to hang on? Read this blog to discover what it means to PREVAIL! #ChristianBlog

That’s when the Lord reminds me of something beautiful that I learned a few years ago while preparing to preach at a conference. It’s the word, “prevail.”

In my mind, to prevail always meant to win, to succeed at the long-awaited goal. But as I studied, I realized that to prevail often means to simply outlast.

I think of Jacob. He wrestled with God in flesh all night and refused to let go. His hip was dislocated by the Lord and he forever-after walked with a limp. That sounds like a defeat to me. But what does the Lord say about this epic wrestling match? “Then [God] said, ‘Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed’” (Genesis 32:28).

Prevailed? Really? All Jacob did was hang on and he is credited with prevailing. He didn’t win in the traditional sense; he didn’t pin God down or throw the deciding blow. He just hung on.

Strength isn’t acquired when, every once in a while, we exert heroic strength. Strength is acquired by consistent resistance to pressure over time. Exercising those muscles of enduring, you will become more able to do the things for which you thought you had no strength. Here’s the surprise: our “work” isn’t to keep a stiff upper lip. This strength is only found in learning to be more dependent on the Lord, letting Him carry you. And therein lies the true strength: trust. #LifeQuotes

As you hang on to the point of prevailing, you will find that something else has been at work in you: you have grown in strength. Most strength isn’t acquired when, every once in a while, we exert heroic strength. Strength is acquired by consistent resistance to pressure over time. As you exercise those muscles of enduring, you will become more and more able to do the things for which you thought you had no strength.

And here’s the surprise: our “work” in those times isn’t to keep a stiff upper lip, to buck up, to be tougher. Ironically, this strength is only found in learning to be more and more dependent on the Lord, leaning into Him, letting Him carry you. And therein lies the true strength: trust. Trust is the strength built as you consistently resist the temptation to quit or doubt the Lord’s goodness as time passes and obstacles seem insurmountable.

You can win by sheer endurance, my Friend. You don’t have to go home in the middle of your labor and never hold that baby, never see that victory. You don’t have to short-circuit your victory by laying down and giving up. When our endurance gives out before the answer comes, we are left with only the pain of the trial and not blessed with seeing the reward. But by the power of the Spirit of God that resides within you, you can overcome every challenge, subdue every enemy; you can outlast every battle.

“For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised” (Hebrews 10:36).

To read more about learning hard lessons in tough times, read the blog titled, “3 Things Chronic Illness Has Taught Me,” click HERE!

And make sure you pick up the FREE RESOURCE: “4 Ways to Strengthen Yourself in the Lord” by clicking HERE!