With good reason, we often admire people who are persistent, resilient—those who face hardship but simply refuse to quit. We stand in awe of their grit and self-confidence, and we say to ourselves, “If only I had that kind of willpower.”
Whether we’re facing physical or spiritual challenges, mental or emotional hurdles, sometimes the best we can do is simply keep going. Consider these inspiring words from a resilient man of faith, President Russell M. Nelson: “Whenever an undertaking is begun, both the energy and the will to endure are essential. … Whatever your work may be, endure at the beginning, endure through opposing forces along the way, and endure to the end.”[1]
An unknown poet expressed it this way:
Stick to your task till it sticks to you;
Beginners are many, but enders are few.
Honor, power, place, and praise
Will come, in time, to the one who stays.
Stick to your task till it sticks to you;
Bend at it, sweat at it, smile at it too;
For out of the bend and the sweat and the smile
Will come life’s victories, after awhile.[2]
But what about those times when our will is high, but our power is low? Where do we find “the energy … to endure”? When faced with difficulties, a married couple often turns to each other and says, “All we can do is go forward.” But eventually they added two important words to their familiar refrain: “All we can do is go forward with faith.”
In many cases, those resilient, self-confident people we admire would tell us that their confidence is not solely in themselves. We are not expected to endure on our own. Every one of “life’s victories” is a team victory. We all need love and support, wisdom, and encouragement from others. And most of all, we need the Lord Jesus Christ and His strengthening, sustaining influence. Indeed, the best kind of willpower comes from a higher power. It is our faith that unlocks that power.
Faith helps us look beyond our current struggles. Faith gives us confidence beyond our own, empowering us to press forward to a future that’s even better than we can imagine. That’s the difference between enduring to the end and enduring to the end with faith.
[1] Russell M. Nelson, “Endure and Be Lifted Up,” Ensign, May 1997, 71.
[2] “Stick to Your Task,” in Jack M. Lyon and others, eds., Best-Loved Poems of the LDS People (1996), 255–56.
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October 30, 2022
Broadcast Number 4,859
The Tabernacle Choir
Orchestra at Temple Square
Conductor
Mack Wilberg
Organist
Joseph Peeples
Host
Lloyd Newell
Redeemer of Israel
Freeman Lewis; Arr. Mack Wilberg
Let There Be Light!
Gilbert M. Martin
There Is Sunshine in My Soul Today
John R. Sweney; Arr. Mack Wilberg
Trumpet Tune in A Major
James C. Kasen
Down to the River to Pray
American folk hymn; Arr. Mack Wilberg
Faith
Michael Finlinson Moody; Arr. Richard Elliott
Music Everywhere
Ryan Murphy