Chairman's Update

The word “endurance” doesn’t seem to be used much these days. We hear more about individual feelings, comforts, and desires. Emotionally driven selfish thoughts seem to dominate the headlines, reels and sound bites of our culture. This may lead to a generation averse to hard times.

According to Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary (one of my favorite reference books), the word endurance refers to “bearing or suffering; a continuing under pain or distress without resistance or without sinking or yielding to the pressure”. We can all find ourselves amid a season where endurance is required.

In August 1914, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton departed England with 27 men on a ship

bound for Antarctica. The plan was to be the first exploration party to walk across the frozen continent. The trip was wrought with setbacks and challenges almost from the start. The ship, which oddly enough was named The Endurance, ultimately sank in the ice. The men and their sled dogs were in the midst of a seemingly hopeless journey and a daily fight for survival. They dealt with attacking Leopard Seals,

freezing temperatures, and the stark realization that they were too far away for any hope of a rescue. Little did the men know that their expedition would be a nearly two-year endeavor to get back to civilization and their homes. They had many successes and failures along the way…and yet they endured.

Many times, we find ourselves amidst a storm where we are barely hanging on. These seasons can be challenging and lonely, but we need to persist. Some seasons are relatively short and others will last for years. Life doesn’t play fair. One thing for certain is that if we trust God to give us the strength to bear the pain or discomfort, He will sustain us in the darkest times. This

is the best plan we can have to help us endure.

As the Shackleton crew found, endurance does not mean comfort or ease or even choosing the path we desire. The words found inscribed inside of Ernest Shackleton’s Bible that he kept with

him on the journey are particularly encouraging:

“May the Lord help you to do your duty and guide you through all danger by land and sea. May you see the works for the Lord and all His wonders in the deep.”

Have a great day!

Isaiah 25:4

“For you have been a defense for the helpless, a defense for the needy in his distress, a refuge

from the storm, a shade from the heat…” 

John Goad Jr.

Board of Directors

Chairman