The Reward of Tenacity
"Oh my soul, march on in strength" - Deborah
Three women have the honor of having their names recorded in the geneology of Christ. And as I pondered this on a recent morning (yes, these are the things I muse on), I wondered what these three women - Rahab, Ruth, and Tamar - might have in common. Tenacity is the word that immediately came to mind, or “dropped into my spirit” if you would allow me a bit of “Christianese” so I continued the trail of thought, recognizing there would be gems to glean from the lives of these women and how each one exhibited tenacity in her own unique circumstance.
“Swear to me by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, show kindness now to me and my family and save us” Rahab essentially said to the two spies she had harbored. Rehab had come to an awareness of the saving power of The One True God and recognized her opportunity when it presented itself, and then acted upon that opportunity. In essence, she strategized her own deliverance and that of her entire family because she was tenacious in her grip of her opportunity. She knew there would be no other. You may call her harlot, and accurately so, as she is named even in the Hebrew Hall of Fame, but I call her Strategist because of her tenacity in her newly acquired faith.
And then there's Ruth and her immortal words, “Where you go, I will go, where you lodge, I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” Ruth was resolved, as evidenced by her words, to begin the journey into an unknown land and an unknown people and see it through to its end. She had to have known the journey wouldn’t be easy, but she was determined to follow the footsteps of Naomi into a new land. With her words Ruth set her course, and her words came to pass. Ruth worked hard, listened to wise counsel, but above all she was tenacious in her desire to stay in relationship with Naomi and start a new life.
And then there's Tamar. Oh me, oh my. I haven't studied out her story so much, but I know she was determined to have her baby, one (scandalous) way or another. I thought Ruth was bold in her willingness to lie at the feet of Boaz, but Tamar was even more audacious in her doings. Although the men in her life didn't do right by her, she was determined to have a child and it was only through her tenacity that she secured a place in the family lineage. Tamar wouldn’t allow herself to cast aside, to be robbed of what was promised to her, and she risked her life even to receive what was due her.
Three women. Three tenacious women, I marveled and continue to marvel. Then came the realization that tenacity might also be a word for me. That my Good Lord might also be requiring me to be tenacious as I step into 2025. For I have tried and I have failed to sell my current home. This home in which it's no longer practical or feasible for my husband Bruce and I to live in these past two plus years. First in my own strength, and then with more leaning into the Lord, but still our home does not sell. “Stay the course” I hear Him say, in regard to the buyer who backed out of the contract this past week. “Trust me. I require that you continue trust Me. I will make a way, for I am your Way Maker. Will you trust Me?”
Perhaps you hear the Lord speaking to you in like manner, for in the passage of days I realized “tenacity” might be a word for the Church. For in these tumultuous times we cannot afford to be passive, we must be passionately proactive in our holy pursuit of what He has set before us to do. And friend, your unique circumstance will uniquely outline your unique blueprint for God to receive the glory as you set forth your hand and heart to accomplish His good will and purpose in and through your life. Let us stand fast therefore, in the power of His Might, and encourage one another in love and good works. For these are trying times that will in fact test us, but in the end we shall come forth as gold if we stay our course.
A Thankful Heart, 12.31.24
Tenacious: Inclined to hold fast; inclined to retain what is in possession
Tenacity: the quality or ability to stick to a thing (or to others) Webster's 1828
“So let us not grow weary in well doing, for in due season we shall reap if we do not faint, give up, lose heart, or grow weary. Therefore, as we have opportunity let us do good to everyone, and especially unto those of the family of faith.” Galatians 6:9-10, paraphrased