Many Aspire, Few Attain

This title comes from a message spoken by Walt Henrichsen. I listened to it this past week to remind myself that the trials God has allowed have two potential outcomes: 1) To take me out of the Christian race – to sit on the self and be ineffective for Jesus OR 2) To produce character, patience, humility, and birth new opportunities to be part of God’s redemption – in my life and in this world (Romans 5:3-5; James 1:2-4; Philippians 3:12-14).

When we give our lives to Jesus, it’s hard to imagine what would “take us out.” We assume we will follow Him forever. We assume the fire in our chest to read His Word, to proclaim His gospel, to make disciples, to love others, to give generously, etc. will never fade. And yet, as Walt says, the sobering fact is that MANY aspire to live for Jesus and be part of His work on earth, but FEW will live their lives sold out for Him and attain this goal.

In his opening he says this:

The apostle Paul writes that a soldier must endure sufferings and hardship if he plans on getting into the battle (2 Tim. 2:3). The spiritual battle is a battle for keeps. Count the cost. Don’t enter it unless you plan on winning. Don’t enter it unless you plan on giving your life totally to it. Don’t enter it unless you plan on suffering and enduring hardship because your adversary and his legions of demons play dirty. They fight rough. They give no quarter.

Remember, however, that Christ who is in you is greater than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4). You fight on the winning side. You can take consolation and refuge in that, but it is a bloody campaign nonetheless. The deeper you get into it, the uglier and nastier it gets. The attrition rate in the Christian life is absolutely horrendous. In the final analysis, many aspire, but few attain. Many begin well, but precious few end well.”

Walt outlines 14 actions we can do to help our odds at becoming the few. Though not exhaustive, it’s a good start. The one that spoke to me the most when I listened to it this past week was a simple one, #4 Trust God. He says this:

“There are going to be times in your life when the living God, to use a gambler’s term, is going to take all of the blue chips and He’s going to push them right in the middle of the table and He’s going to say, ‘Friend, we’re going for broke on this one. Let’s see how you’re doing in your Christian life.’ More often then not, people push all kinds of panic buttons on the console and punch out. If you really want to walk with God, then you have to learn to trust Him. . . The day is going to come when the bottom is going to drop out, the roof is going to cave in and somebody’s going to say, ‘Cheer up, it’s going to get worse.’ And sure enough, you’ll cheer up and it will get worse.

‘Without faith it is impossible to please Him’ (Hebrews 11:6). If you’re planning on pleasing God, you’ve got to walk by faith. God is in control of this world. And all He wants from you is intelligent cooperation. Boiled down to one word that simply means trust. Many will never make it simply because they cannot muster up enough courage and faith in their souls to really trust Him when the going gets rough.”

As he said in his opening, we are entering a battle where the enemy plays dirty. Then God is going to ask us to trust Him and “go for broke.” We can’t see all the cards, but that’s why it’s called faith. If we could see all the cards, it wouldn’t be faith.

Do we trust Him: in giving when money is scarce, in our location when we wish we were somewhere else, with our work when our boss is tough, with our marriages when it’s been broken, with our children when one is wayward, with justice when we want revenge, with a cancer diagnosis, with our safety when security is elusive, in overcoming addiction when it seems impossible, in opening our hearts to love others sacrificially when we have past scars of betrayal, with aging parents, with our pain when dreams are shattered, and much more all while keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus and pursuing His Kingdom?

Will we “go for broke” or will we bail? And when the enemy means evil even for us, will we stay in the refiner’s fire and allow God to use it for good? Will we lose heart and become bitter at our losses or will we press on to gain Christ? Will be part of the many who only aspired or will we become the few who endure to the end and attain?

I encourage your to listen or read the message in it’s entirety. It will challenge you for sure and I hope it gives you tools for staying in the race!

To listen to the message, follow this link.

To download the pdf and read the message, follow this link.