Pause for thought!

Did My Radio Shropshire "Pause for thought"
Like Mike George who presents the show, very easy to get on with and knows Ross on Wye well!

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I am not a great gardener but I do like to have a go, so one blustery autumn day last year my daughter and I wrapped up warm- put our wellies on and headed down the garden armed with a trowel and some daffodil bulbs acquired from a local gardening centre .It took us a while, but eventually we had planted the bulbs near an apple tree, in a sunny spot about 8 inches deep and 6 inches apart as per the instructions on the bag. Job done we headed back to the house for a nice warm cup of tea!

In the recent cold spell I happened to be in the same spot, the ground was covered in snow and rock hard with frost. It was so cold the local brook had partially frozen over .I glanced down at the ground and right beside my feet just peeping up above the earth almost covered by snow; I was amazed to see one of the daffodil bulbs which had now become a tiny and seemingly fragile bud.

It hadn’t yet opened but despite the arctic weather it had survived, and one day in the not too far distant future it will flower and herald the fact that winter is ending and spring is on the way!

That small bud pushing its way up through frozen ground reminded me again of the value of perseverance

One of the books I was given for Christmas was the biography of the former England fast bowler Harold Larwood a shy young lad with little self confidence and small physique who became one of the best and fastest bowlers the world has ever seen. How did he do it He practiced for hour after hour after hour day after day so he could land the ball on a sixpence not once but time after time ....that is the value of perseverance as has been said genius is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration!

Inspired as I am by Harold Larwood;I am much more inspired by Jesus who persevered through hostility, opposition, hunger and even betrayal, yet all the time he kept moving forward towards the cross. Indeed on that cross his last words before he died were “it is finished!” Not a cry of despair but declaration of victory The task is done the goal is reached!

Nowhere is perseverance needed more than at times of difficulty and disaster
The people of Haiti in the midst of tragedy are demonstrating this perseverance but we in wealthier parts of the world must persevere in our attempts to help and alleviate such dreadful suffering

But we need perseverance on a personal level too

What do you want to achieve in the next year? What are your hopes and dreams for the future they are very unlikely to come easily they will probably need hard work; perseverance .the ability to keep on going on no matter how fragile the dream and how hard the ground to be covered! A person who perseveres does not stop till they reach their goal.

The Bible tells us to ``run with perseverance the race that is marked out for us'' It tells you to do so by fixing your eyes on Jesus!

As the bulb becomes a bud that becomes a flower that heralds spring is on the way so the perseverance of Jesus through death to the resurrection should give us hope for the future and should encourage us to keep going now