by Jill Pearson
This mild Minnesota winter hasn’t taken as much of our grit and endurance as usual, but we all know living in Minnesota and in the greater world of suffering demands a type of perseverance that the Bible says will bear all kinds of good fruit if handled with prayer and counted as joy.
As I write this, I am just wrapping up the final bit of healing from a painful knee sprain due to my imagining that I was a pickleball pro and should “go hard for that slam.” It was not pretty and the pain was intense. I did, however, gain some helpful insights during the “Jill Moves Like a Grimacing Sloth” period. I learned a certain peace is found in moving slowly instead of rushing from one task to the next. I had to whittle my schedule down to the essentials and lean on my husband to pick up the slack. I did a lot of reading on spiritual disciplines and formation while icing and elevating my knee. I was warmed by all the kind texts I got from my pickleball community and encouragement I got from strangers as I moved awkwardly through the grocery store on crutches. The best use of my time was meditating on Romans 5:3-5, especially during physical therapy…
3 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
My healing took only a couple of weeks, but many of us have been required to persevere for months or even years. In this month’s Stir, we explore the theme of perseverance. Beth Ecker shares a devotional on persevering in prayer, and Melisa Reimer shares the harrowing story of life with lupus and how God has met her at every turn. Kate Laack shares the lessons she’s learned through marathon training, and Sarah Roduner shares her journey through the ups and downs of homeschooling over the years. We introduce you to Sheryl Vold and Marne Perrin in Faces of Calvary, and we share some fun “Winter Boredom Buster” ideas from Vicki Tierney and Women’s Ministries, along with an Easter craft by Elizabeth Walby.
As always, we hope you find these stories edifying and that you reach out to one of us if you know a Calvary lady with a story to share!
Jill Pearson is co-editor of The Stir, wife to Dave, and mom to three young adults who have flown the nest but are easily lured back with an offer of dinner. She owns and operates Riverwood Studio, an art education business, and finds creative ways to serve at Calvary.