Fight One More Round

More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. – Romans 5:3-5 
 
In 1892, James J. Corbett became the first boxing heavyweight world champion, winning by knock-out in the 21st round. After the fight, He was asked what’s the key to being a champion, and here’s what he said, “Fight one more round. When your feet are so tired that you have to shuffle back to the center of the ring, fight one more round. When your arms are so tired that you can hardly lift your hands to come on guard, fight one more round. When your nose is bleeding and your eyes are black and you are so tired that you wish your opponent would crack you on the jaw and put you to sleep, fight one more round, remembering that the man who always fights one more round is never whipped.”  
 
I don’t know what your circumstances are or what obstacles you are facing, but let me encourage you to fight one more round. You may feel like giving up, but fight one more round. You may feel defeated, but fight one more round. You’re not beaten yet. You can go again. And I’m confident that you’ll be surprised by what you can achieve if you never give up, and keep on fighting. That’s the key to restoration in life. Not giving up. 
 
We were not created to quit. Scripture has so much to say about the value of perseverance and endurance. So let’s take Corbett’s advice. Let’s choose to never give up, even when everything happening in your life makes you want to throw in the towel. Let’s keep going even when we’re tired and worn down. Let’s draw close to the Lord, following His lead, and persevering so that we might experience all He wants to do in our lives further down the road.