THE VIRTUOUS MAN PODCAST

Perseverance PodCast [00:00:00] Hey there guys is pastor Micah Moreno with the virtuous man. And we were talking about perseverance. Have you ever had to persevere in a time of trial setback or, just confusion. I think we all have, and I think that's the great opportunity that we get to talk about today when it comes to adopting the virtue of. [00:00:19] Perseverance. And what does it mean to persevere? Why is it important and how can this be part of your arsenal of living a life as a virtuous man or virtuous woman? You know, I appreciate all the support that has been taking place and taking shape on this platform for the virtuous man. And I just invite you to continue to, subscribe to this podcast. [00:00:39] Be a part of the virtuous crew. Check out the website, virtuous man. Org and err, and continue to, just to see how God is going to be moving in this way. So many. I have an opportunity to take a circumstance, a setback, a trial, and allow it to either be, a type of adversity [00:01:00] or force that can push them forward or, push them down. [00:01:05] And so my hope is that if you're a person who is seeking to build a character, seeking to build a life of, consistency and, and as. Partnering along in this whole journey of building character, you see that, perseverance comes when you are willing to risk what it is like to not give up. How many times have you given up. [00:01:29] I've given up a ton. I have set had set backs. I have made plans, new year's resolutions commitments signed up for gym memberships or something else, and only to find myself, not sticking to it and not remaining committed to a goal or. It seems to be something about us as people that we don't always find ourselves willing to commit and remain committed to the very, goals, plans, and outcomes that we've sought to find ourselves, have a deep value or connection to what is that about us? [00:01:59] [00:02:00] Why are we like that? I don't know. But one thing I can assure is that when we are starting to live into a frame of mind or an outlook that is willing to. Person, perseverance, you and I are going to grow. And it just seems to be one of those things where if we only could realize how much time we have lost in the round. [00:02:25] Around and around that we go like a merry-go-round of making a decision, making the commitments and then getting off the merry-go-round commitment and then going back on and making it all over again. How much time we've lost, how much energy has been spent and how much opportunity we could have recaptured. [00:02:44] If we are really going to be people who will make a commitment. We'll follow through and when it gets tough or we hit a plateau or there's some level of not understanding what's taking shape, we continue to take steps forward. We elicit help. We find [00:03:00] more ways to empower ourselves or others to be on the journey with us so that we're moving forward and developing as disciples of Jesus. [00:03:09] And so that really is my hope is that whatever takes place in life, that you remain committed in our focus on. It takes to be a person, a perseverance. So many times in life, we find ourselves up against, a steep incline. My hope is that, even though the incline is, is steep or the opportunity in front of you is to not be, very excited about the challenges that are to come is really to be mindful of the larger perspective that we have. [00:03:43] That no matter what we have to engage with whatever struggle is. That we don't give up because we have a larger mentality. We have a perspective that is really focused, not just on the world, in front of us, but rather [00:04:00] the eternal perspective that's given to us through a biblical lens. If you are a disciple of Jesus and that's my hope is that, and why I'm doing this is that you continue to find yourself drawn into the opportunity to grow in faith is that you are finding yourself. [00:04:15] Leaning into a biblical reality that, you are going to see God's work in your life. And as you see God work in your life, you're going to come into these seasons and we always need to begin or continue to operate with the end in mind. And if we can have the end in mind when it comes to a life of why you're seeking to live as a person, a perseverance, we remember that the end goal is our encounter with Jesus himself, RN. [00:04:43] Is he eternal life? Our, our in goal is to be in a place of no shame, no fear, no pain and no tears. And that is really exciting and something that when we are up against, great tragedy, great trial and great storms, it gives us hope. It gives us, a [00:05:00] willingness to be strong, to endure and to persevere. [00:05:03] And that's really my hope for a lot of people is that they find themselves when their backs are against the wall. Now they don't give in. That we actually find ourselves to be more resilient, stronger and more about the business of the kingdom when we are willing to adopt a virtue of perseverance. So there's really four to five questions that I am asking everyone to consider each and every week when we start, developing a new virtue with the virtuous man platform. [00:05:28] And really is this the first one is who needs you to adopt this virtue? Who needs you to be a person, a perseverance? What relationship requires. To stick it out to not give up to not be discouraged that you just stay stuck and not moving. A lot of people may be saying my marriage or my relationship with my boss or a coworker, or if you're in school, sticking it out through the trials of [00:06:00] classwork and, rubrics and testing and whatnot. [00:06:04] All of us have a place where we can see the advantage of who needs us to be a person of virtue because it great. It creates an access point to. A better relationship with your spouse, a, more cohesive, work environment with your job, or even opening the door to your future. If you stick out the route, the rigorous rubrics and the Scholastic, calls upon your mind and your study habits. [00:06:29] When it comes to your career vocation that you're studying for, there's a lot who could benefit from you being a person over a Jew and not to mention how you yourself can benefit from that. The second one is how do we make meaning out of being a person of perseverance? Why, why is it important? The world? [00:06:48] Well, many people like to give up quickly when they have to delay or be patient or don't get exactly what they want. We're called to really make meaning in life. Sometimes it's worth enduring and [00:07:00] persevering in a season of doubt in a season of trial, in a season of failure and a season of setbacks, if only people would not be quick to. [00:07:09] The, the parachute or the ejection had the injection button on different parts of their lives and rather than persevere and would do the hard work and be accountable and work towards the greater goal or a shared goal, we would find more people would have the benefit of going through the process of growth. [00:07:24] And that would mean that they make meaning out of the value of persevering and going through the hard time. We, when it comes to life, we've been conditioned not to fail. We've been conditioned to see that if we are vulnerable and we take a risk, that's beyond our confidence level, then our confidence level, then we will find ourselves risking too much because we might fail. [00:07:44] We might suck. We might fall apart and we might just completely blow it. But how much have you learned in life from always getting things? For me, not as often as I have learned from failing and that's spanned courage meant to you is not to be too concerned [00:08:00] about the failure. The failure is a great teacher. [00:08:02] If you allow it to be the third question, what's the big lie. What's the big lie in your life that prevents you from adopting this virtue, who has told you that you are not able to persevere, who has told you that you're weak, who has told you that you are always going to remain a failure and that your failures are always going to define you. [00:08:17] Those are. Those are big lies. They're lies from people who are unhealthy. Those are lies from an internal talk that isn't understanding how people can take a failure and use it for as an opportunity for growth. And those are definitely lies that the enemy tells us those who are following Jesus, that, they want to point in accuse in, really bring us down and not allow us to keep her view of heaven and, honoring God on the forefront of our minds. [00:08:41] So whatever, or whoever has given you a label that you are not. The person and perseverance, then that is something that you have to reject through prayer through meditation, through writing down goals, through writing down the things that you have learned through failure and how you have already stuck it out in life and how that's been a benefit to you. [00:08:58] Those are all ways that you can see how [00:09:00] God wants you to become a virtuous man or woman by being a person who perseveres. And you learn that through your failures. It's a beautiful thing. And the fourth question is how can you use this virtue as a means to really draw people into, learning about the gospel of Christ? [00:09:17] How can your life through being a person who perseveres allow that to be a witness and a testimony about the goodness of. I think there's so many examples we can think of one example from the story of my life is that, I was unemployed for about, 21 months. Back in, 2010 to 2012, and it was one of the most difficult seasons of my life where my bank account hit zero many times. [00:09:44] There was a point, and I, it's hard for me to talk about this, but there's a point in, in my time as a father, and I shared custody with my two kids with their mom. And there was a moment where I wasn't able to feed myself. And that was a real bummer. That was a real struggle. And, there was [00:10:00] that. [00:10:00] One meal, where I had given my kids everything that they would need. But I didn't have anything to eat. And I was praying to God that there were going to have enough to eat, because of the amount of food that I was able to provide for them. And that was just a big struggle that I had at that time. [00:10:18] And I didn't want that moment to be so scarring that it made me afraid, but rather I use that as a reason to understand that I couldn't do. That I could overcome that there was at the end that no matter if you have little to nothing, you still can provide a house. And a relationship of love and purpose. [00:10:38] And so sorry, my computer is doing something in there, but my hope is is that you all have a story that you can use and share with others that inspires them to realize that in moments like that, for me, I was at that spot of, of, lacking food and lacking. An opportunity to provide and a lacking an opportunity to be, you know, giving everything [00:11:00] my kids could want. [00:11:01] I gave them what they needed, but instead of they want, I realized that God brought me to a place of really, depending upon him in the time of, of tight times. And so I persevered. And wherever that story is for you. My hope is that it fuels your imagination. It fuels your passion. If you is an opportunity for you to push through and find that you can take steps, you can learn new skills, you can adopt new habits and, and, and mind frames or frames of mind. [00:11:29] And, and you can look in the mirror and see yourself being brought to a place of further understanding and growth as you become a person of. And that's so exciting because it means that there's, boundaries and limits that you thought were there before that really can just peel away and start to not be as important or as inhibiting to the things that God has called you to. [00:11:49] And that really opens the door to saying, Hey, I wrote, I want to risk a little more and learn a little more and, and succeed and fail and, and, and go through things and start to experience the richness of life that I [00:12:00] think can really come from a person who's willing to not give up, to see things through, to push. [00:12:05] And to adopt a new way of seeing as God reveals that truth to you. That's really a hope of mine is that you can find a lot of value in learning to be someone who doesn't give up easily, who reaches down deep. It pushes through, because one, you realize that you're not alone in the fight. I'm with you. [00:12:26] Other people with you and above all God is with you. And in that place of where you may feel misunderstood or isolated, or like. God will never abandon you. The Lord says at the end of Matthew, that I will never forsake you to the ends of the earth. And my goodness. Sometimes we feel like we're at the very edge of the earth of our lives at the end of our ropes. [00:12:48] And even there, God is with you to hold you, to walk with you, to remind you, to build you up, to speak truth into your heart when your mind is a chaos in a storm. And that's my hope is that in [00:13:00] those places you find the tensile strength to hold. Then I'll let go to not give up and find that this is just a test before the testimony and that's such good news. [00:13:11] So wherever you are. And a struggle to give up or not give up, or if you've maybe sat down, my encouragement is to get back up to not be afraid, to continue to move yourself in a direction where you learn something by pushing through the envelope of their comfort zone by persevering. And it's in that place where you do push through the envelope of your comfort zone that you start to see. [00:13:31] Your inherent ability to grow, to adapt, to be strengthened, to be, to just grow into a place of a person who has an ability to overcome mountain peaks and, to climb up walls and to be able to traverse the difficulties of life. And you find that yourself is becoming further and further tempered into steel that can cut through problems that can cut through obstacles. [00:13:52] And that really can take down the lies of the enemy and be a person who's reading. As trustworthy as [00:14:00] strong as enduring and. And that's my hope for you. God bless you. I hope that you've enjoyed this little episode of this virtuous man platform, and I hope so much that you would comment, follow, share, and be a part of the ongoing growth of this ministry. [00:14:16] My hope is that we continue to see more people come into, a willingness to adopt, the virtues. I got a lot of plans in the future. I want to I'm developing coursework plans on webinars, things like that that can really help people adopt a life of virtue so that they can build upon the platform. The Foundry. [00:14:32] Of their faith in Christ. I'm thankful so much for this time. May you continue to see God using you in ways as you grow into a person, a perseverance, and in everything that I pray that you keep looking up and thanks so much for listening. God bless.

How Hopeful are you? Can you see that perhaps a greater hope is a key step towards a life that is able to weather the storms? (Hebrews 10:23) 

  “Character requires consistency. Character without reason is likely to be highly inconsistent.”   The goals is to adopt the way we think about ourselves through expressing virtues so that the gospel of Christ is Communicated through us! 

Confidence According to the research, confidence motivates us to take action in the face of uncertainty. So the more confident we are, the more motivated we are to face life's challenges and fight for the resources we need to survive and flourish.   15. Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.     What are we putting our Confidence in?  Can we see that nothing aside God is dependable?    Are we willing to see ourselves as God defines us or do the label makers win?  We all have a choice to chose between the definition of Heaven or the opinion of the trolls.  As a Christian, I define self esteem as having confidence that I am who God says I am.   What Can generate our Confidence?    True spiritual confidence doesn't come from our own talents or accomplishments. It comes from an assurance that all of it—everything, including you and me—is God's. - BETH GUCKENBERGER

Faithfulness is about being in practice of who we claim to be. If we are trustworthy, then we are constantly seeking to live that out as a person showing up as promised. 

This Podcast is about a life build on Faith through the lens of Virtues. It can grow your relationships, your goals, and your understanding of a greater purpose!