Have you been watching the continuous footage on the Chilean miners’ rescue? For over two months the miners have struggled; prisoners of a personal tragedy. With the rescue of each miner, the reason for celebration grows. Can you image being trapped underground for any length of time? Think about conditions, complications, and challenges that engulfed them. They were buried alive and unable to rescue themselves. Hope must have waned, don’t you think? Doubt in the prospect of an imminent rescue is understandable, if not obvious. According to experts, an actual extraction was nearly an impossible feat.
As I watch the rescue, I’m reminded of two necessary attitudinal attributes essential for living well regardless of life’s season. Every person needs both hope and perseverance. Hope in Christ and hope in a future resolve. Where is your hope? Do you have hope? Where has your hope been placed? I’m not asking you to promote false hope, but a living hope. I’m referring to a hope which supersedes the obvious because you trust the One that is not confined to typical results. Hebrews 6:19a states, “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” (NIV) Our ultimate hope is in Christ. We also live with a hope (vision or dream) of the heart which drives our ambition (His will for our life).
Perseverance is the second attribute demonstrated in this story. There is both the perseverance of the miners and those above ground working around the clock to facilitate the rescue. Even when the odds looked less favorable neither these men nor their rescuers gave up. Perseverance is becoming less and less apparent in our society. We give up too easily. You don’t like this or that, something is perceived as too hard, or maybe it’ll take too long to complete and so you give up. It has been said, “Anything worth having is worth working for.” Apparently we struggle with identifying what’s worth having and consequently we neglect the tenacity to work for what is worth having. James 1:14 says, “Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking in anything.” (NIV)
I rejoice with these miners and their families. You are realizing a hope you’ve held for two months. I celebrate with the rescuers. You didn’t give up and persevered. Today we smile at the demonstration of hope and perseverance.
