Romans 8:28  ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’

•          DAILY READING            James 1; Jeremiah 21-22; Psalm 129

When she was young, Florence Chadwick wanted desperately to be a great speed swimmer. At the age of six she persuaded her parents to enter her in a 50-yard race. She came in last, so she practiced every day for the new year. Again she entered and lost. When she was an 11-year old, Florence won attention and praise for completing the San Diego Bay endurance swim — 6 miles in all. But she still wanted to be a speed swimmer. At 14 years, she tried for the national backstroke championship but came in second. At 18 years, she tried out for Olympic speed swimming and came in fourth , she didn’t make the team. Frustrated, she gave up, married, and moved on to other interests. As she matured, however, Florence began to wonder if she might not have done better if she had specialized in endurance swimming, something that came more naturally. So, with the help of her father, she began swimming distances again. Twelve years after she had failed to make the Olympic team, Florence Chadwick swam the English Channel, breaking the existing 24-year-old record.

She then her goal at being the first woman to swim the twenty six miles between Catalina Island and the California coastline. On the fourth of July 1952, Florence aged thirty four years, embarked on this long swim. Her quest was a difficult one, looking out for sharks, battling fatigue, and then finally a thick fog that set in, preventing her from seeing the shore ahead of her. After about fifteen hours swimming, Florence began to doubt her ability, and she decided to quit. Exhausted and frustrated, she gave up and asked to be brought into a nearby guide boat. To her dismay, she discovered she was only a mile from the shore. She said had she known how close she was, she surely would have completed her race successfully.

Two months later, Florence got back in the water to try once more. This time was different. She swam from Catalina Island to the shore of California in a straight path for twenty six miles. The same thick fog set in, but Florence made it because she said that while she swam, she kept a mental image of the shoreline in her mind. Florence Chadwick became the first woman to swim the Catalina Channel, eclipsing the men’s record by two hours! She didn’t lose sight of the shore because she focused on that image of the coast in her mind, and in this way, she reached her goal.

Sometimes in our journey it seems conditions like a “thick fog” settle around us, keeping us from seeing how very close we are to our victory. We need to keep pressing forward no matter what. It is true that sometimes life’s race can become discouraging, but keep reminding yourself that the path of the just is as a shining light that shines more and more unto the perfect day. What it means is that it can only get better. And when you are tempted to give up remind yourself that God is causing all things to work for your good.

Romans 8:28  says ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.’

Indeed when you love God and you concern yourself with doing His will, things will  eventually work out in your favor. It is only a matter of time before you are ushered into a new level of glory. Presently you may not yet be where you aim to be. but look back and see how far you have come already. You may not be everything you want to be but at least you can thank God that you’re not what you used to be. Your dreams may not have turned out exactly as you’d hoped, but thank God you are still in the game of life, and to him that is joined to the living there is hope.

No matter how many times you get knocked down, keep getting back up. Don’t waver. Rather see every challenge as an opportunity to draw closer to God. Keep pressing forward in the call of God upon your life.  Daily draw strength from God’s Word and maintain a fervent prayer life. You need to build up strength in your inner man by feeding on The Word. The Word of God is our source of strength. You can never hope to overcome the opposition except by the strength of The Word within you. Indeed through  Christ you can do all things.

PRAYER: Lord, thank You for imparting into me divine strength for life’s journey. Please  grant me fresh appetite for Your Word so that I can acquire the faith I need to overcome in every challenge that comes my way in Jesus Name. .

QUOTE :

Nothing liberates like truth, the truth you know shall set you free. – WORDBITE 222.