Deeper Reflection
The Book of Hebrews teaches three kinds of faith, which can be encapsulated in Hebrews 11:35: exploits faith, endurance faith and eschatological faith.⁶ I have been a Christian for 50 years. The faith in my faith journey has been mainly endurance faith. And such is our present faith journey in having a special-needs son, whom we love, with the daily emotionally draining challenges that we face, and asking from time to time, “How long, O Lord?” (Psa 13:1). At times, I asked, “Lord, have I not endured enough?”On my 66th birthday (14 March 2023), I had a prostate biopsy done. And on 30 March, I discovered that I have prostate cancer. I don’t usually follow the Devotional Journal to read what I have written. But God directed me to read the entry of 30 March, entitled, “The Heat of Adversity Increases.” It seems that what I have written, God has meant it for me. I think, it is God’s answer to my question, “Lord, have I not endured enough?”By Daniel 6, Daniel was a very old man, who was subjected to a severe test of his faithfulness to God (vv.3-17), more searching than the one he faced as a youth (Dan 1:8-16).⁷ “That Daniel faced this challenge to his faith in old age is a sobering lesson. There never comes a time in life when we can sit back and think that our faithfulness to God is so well established that it will never be challenged or tested again.”⁸ “Yesterday’s covenant loyalty was not enough. Today calls for a fresh choice.”⁹

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⁶ I have written on this in Covenant EFC’s Devotional Journal 2013: 18, 19, 20 March ⁷ Christopher J. H. Wright, 125 ⁸ Christopher J. H. Wright, 125 ⁹ Christopher J. H. Wright, 126