" Never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give
in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force;
never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.'' W (not Ward) Churchill
There are lots of times I have been tempted to quit, and likely the same is true for you. Sometimes the odds just seem too formidable. Sometimes it just doesn't seem worth the effort. Without going into detail, just trust me that it is a daunting task to try to teach sometimes.
I was so encouraged this afternoon when Brenda and I ran into one of my students from the big class. The student volunteered, "Wow you have patience! Most folks would have thrown out most of the students in that class."
I was thrilled that he recognized what I am up against. I was also thrilled that he could see a bit from my perspective.
I'm guessing that Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Josiah, Isaiah, Hosea, and even Jesus must have thought, "These people are just impossible! Let's ditch the whole lot and start again." I guess G^d started anew in Noah's generation, and i am not sure why he hasn't done so in our generation.
But G^d mercy is astounding. Lamentations 3 says:
22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
Were it not for G^d's great love, we would indeed be consumed.
Sunday night as we discussed the fallen nature of man, it dawned on me. The remarkable thing isn't that we are corrupt, the remarkable thing is that even in our corruption, G^d's common grace allows us to function, to some extent.
Great is G^d's mercy and grace.
There are lots of times I have been tempted to quit, and likely the same is true for you. Sometimes the odds just seem too formidable. Sometimes it just doesn't seem worth the effort. Without going into detail, just trust me that it is a daunting task to try to teach sometimes.
I was thrilled that he recognized what I am up against. I was also thrilled that he could see a bit from my perspective.
I'm guessing that Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Josiah, Isaiah, Hosea, and even Jesus must have thought, "These people are just impossible! Let's ditch the whole lot and start again." I guess G^d started anew in Noah's generation, and i am not sure why he hasn't done so in our generation.
But G^d mercy is astounding. Lamentations 3 says:
22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
Were it not for G^d's great love, we would indeed be consumed.
Sunday night as we discussed the fallen nature of man, it dawned on me. The remarkable thing isn't that we are corrupt, the remarkable thing is that even in our corruption, G^d's common grace allows us to function, to some extent.
Great is G^d's mercy and grace.
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