In every way we're troubled, but we aren't crushed by our troubles. We're frustrated, but we don't give up. - 2Co 4:8
Difficulty is the greatest enemy of success. If everything is easy, we would all be rich, have happy families and the world will be full of love. But all of them are distant dreams for many, not for lack of trying but for the difficulty of succeeding in them. Some have actually given up on the idea and others don't even attempt at all.
But if we always say no to things because they're difficult, we can hardly achieve anything. As we can see, despite the difficulties inherent in a lot of things, there are still those who succeed at them. When Jesus commanded His disciples to go and make disciples of all nations, who among them actually believed they could do it upon hearing the command? When Abraham was told he would be the father of a great nation, he was naturally incredulous and his wife Sarah even mocked the idea.
But there is a God who can make the difficult, not easy, but possible.
Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians said that there are those who are called to do more so that others who are inclined to quit at the slightest trouble wouldn't. He is one of them and he offered himself as a servant to God for the sake of those who need to receive the good news (v. 12). By his sacrifice in this servanthood, he shows us that those who are called to do more can be afflicted but not crushed, at times frustrated but not giving up (v. 8 ), persecuted in many places but not abandoned, sometimes captured but not killed (v. 9), always imperiled but likewise delivered (v. 10).
Many dangers and troubles stalk those who are called to do more but they never quit. Parents are called to do more for the sake of the family but they don't easily give up. Teachers who have the right kind of heart are every day called to do more for their students but they report to work day after day. The soldier in the battlefield who carries his wounded comrade to safety under heavy enemy fire never quits because he is saving more than just a life. He is making sacrifices for his country's most treasured values. Those who volunteer in various cause-oriented organizations all over the world put their lives on the line every single day so that others may have a chance at something better. Many people are willing to do unspeakable sacrifices for that chance at something better. The Lord Jesus died so that we may have our own chance at something better. The amount of our determination and perseverance will ultimately be proportional to the magnitude of our love for those whom we serve. No one who has a great love will ever lose to difficulty.
Every bit of perseverance in our life is a possible source of encouragement for someone. If we are called to do more, I believe God also enables us more to do the tasks He assigns. Let's look at the difficulties as an issue but a surmountable one. If God is accomplishing something through us, no amount of difficulty can stop that which He has decreed. The disciples of Jesus was able to make disciples of all nations and Israel came to be out of Abraham's descendants as promised. We should never lose heart even if we are called to do more, but especially if we are simply recipients of the hard work of those who are. The hard workers also need encouragement and they get it when we don't quit on them as well.
