don't give up.

the concept of persistence has come up over and over again in my life as of late. sometimes it'd be so much easier to just give up.

plenty of situations are hard, plenty of situations seem like it would be better to walk away, and leave it, and forget about it.

we live in a culture that holds up this idea as normal. it's encouraged.

if there is "seemingly" no way that you can get what you want, it's not worth it to try. if it's old, pitch it. new is always better. it's not worth it to try to fix something when you could just start over. this idea permeates our culture.

the latest technology, the latest clothes, the latest car, an upgraded house, etc. etc. etc.

we chase happiness.

if i'm not happy, i should move on to something else. or someone else. or somewhere else.

persistence isn't regarded as highly as it should be, in my opinion. things that are really great in life rarely come without the need of persistence. they rarely come without any trials, or tough times. they rarely come without difficulty.

good marriages are hard fought. it would be really easy to just give up and walk away, but sticking it out in the tough times - that's what makes it great.
good friendships, really good friendships are forged only when they are tested.
gold medalists don't get to be champions by giving up when things get hard.
they don't give out medals to marathoners because it's an easy race.
no one gets very high on any ladder without encountering difficulty.

to quote tom hanks as jimmy dugan in "a league of their own": the hard is what makes it great.


my journey with God has been peppered with trials, and darkness, and silence, and failures. i have questioned him time and time again. i don't understand why some things had to happen the way that they did.

but those times are when i grew the most. making it through the difficult times, putting the time in, and pressing on toward the goal to win the race set before us - that is what makes it great.

to paraphrase a quote i heard a long time ago - i promise it won't be easy, but i promise it will be worth it.

it's true in our marriages. it's true when it comes to having kids. it's true when you cross the finish line of a marathon. it's true in our walks with Christ.

whatever your struggle is right now,
keep.pressing.on.

xo,

katie