by Shane Musgrove
On a recent road trip, I had the opportunity to have a conversation with a great and wise friend of mine. While reminiscing the years from his past, he told me the story of a great speaker, writer, and philosopher who spoke at Wheaton College in nineteen sixty-eight. He laid out the setting of the speech, the speaker’s demeanor, and the effectual, authoritative words that were spoken. Something specific that the speaker said awed him and the crowd – something that has lasted a lifetime and left a long lasting impression on his life. He quoted these words to me as something the speaker repeated over and over while ending his speech:
“Do not stop, keep going. Do not stop, keep going.†– Francis Schaeffer – Founder of L’Abri Switzerland
The quote itself implies an admirable and noble quality that is relevant to all of us – perseverance. In fact, it is of essence and a necessity when striving for what we struggle for: state sovereignty, nullification efforts, and God given rights. Yet, unfortunately to our great misfortune, perseverance diminishes over time – seemingly for all of us. It is a quality that frequently dries up in our lives. We cannot seem to hold it in our hands as if it blows away with the wind – it is there one moment and gone the next.
We are inspired when we hear the news of success and hope briefly grazes over us, our spirit’s are lifted and like a medicine it cures the disease. We hear or read something profound and it sends chills down our spines and we can taste the inspiration and our sense to persevere is renewed. And yet again, for most of us it is short lived and it subtly but surely wanes over time. Therefore, we often lose confidence in ourselves and in our struggle. And ultimately we wonder: Is this pain, this struggle, and this fight worth our trial and should we persevere through it?
To answer the above question, let it be known there is no quick fix for this problem and our American idea of instant gratification will not bend itself to success as what lies ahead of us is a long hard path or possibly better stated, “the road less traveled.†However, while viewing it from the illuminating light of liberty, it is without question worth the patience, pain, and struggle. Why? In the words of Charlton Heston, “Because it matters.â€
We often hear or speak of the patriot Samuel Adams and one of his most famous quotes.
“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people’s minds.†– Samuel Adams
In my opinion, it is one of the most insightful and beautiful quotes in American history. However, it implies something greater than what we most often conceive. The ideas of prevailing, an irate minority, and setting brush fires in people’s minds all sound wondrous to us; yet, my fear is that “tireless†does not. And today we struggle for something that unyieldingly requires a “tireless†mind and a constant restoration of perseverance. We struggle for something real, something innate to ever person by their God given right – liberty, which is not easily acquired nor is it something that should be apathetically disregarded. I emphasize this point with the following quote:
“Liberty, once lost, is lost forever.†– John Adams
If thought about considerably, our founder’s foresight and prudence shows us the magnitude and scope of our concern. I personally have hope that it is not “lost forever,†as I do not think this was Adam’s intention in writing. It was a forewarning, which will unquestionably take time to reacquire – perhaps years or even decades. As Michael Boldin stated, “There is no silver bullet.â€
So, do not be deceived into thinking that those in the position of federal power will desist and wither away silently. This futile thinking will lead to dismay, loss of hope, and ultimately apathy. It will take a consistent group of like minded people in support of the original intent of the constitution and an unwavering opposition to unconstitutional mandates and laws. It will be a continual process, one that most likely will never end.
To regain what has been lost, one must dedicate themselves throughout their lives to the cause of liberty, true patriotism, constitutional knowledge, education, and American foundational history. Indeed, this must also be shared and taught to our fellow citizens, children, and grandchildren lest we tread down the same blemished path forever.
And to quote Boldin again, “We the people are sovereign. We just need to start acting like it.†However, underneath this statement lies all that has been stated in this article – “acting like it†requires long term challenges which in turn requires long term firm resolve, which can most accurately be described fundamentally as perseverance.
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To that end, the question remains: Will the brush fires set in people’s minds be greater for liberty or will they be outweighed by those predisposed to tyranny? And to the greatest extent, only prevailing with perseverance will decide the outcome. Therefore, I urge you to run your race well.
“Do not stop, keep going. Do not stop, keep going.†– Francis Schaeffer
Shane Musgrove [send him email] is a freelance writer living in Vail and Denver, Colorado.
Yes……..and? so what's the big hubub?
I think the "big hubub" is that we often loose our drive when faced with tough challenges – an unfortunate reality of our human nature. So, perseverance is key in everything that we do and it especially important concerning matters of our own liberty.
Yes, absolutely! Having unrealistic short term expectations will do that too – it leads to short term failure, and eventually, nothing for the long term. Perseverance is essential – and setting realistic goals. thanks for writing this piece, Shane!
A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history. ~
Mohandas Gandhi
Fantastic quote, thanks for sharing!!
Shane, thank you for the inspiration. And yet it causes me to wonder if what Einstein said about the definition of insanity applies here: Keep doing the same thing and expecting different results. As long as we keep voting for the system in Washington that has only served to reduce liberty in the last 200 years, we continue to provide for Washington DC the approval of our own enslavement. No one has "fixed" Washington in the last 100 years by being elected to office there.
I think the insanity is there – we the people have been doing the same thing for a century now, and things keep getting worse. We the people have marched on dc, we have called our reps, we have sued in their courts – and we've been doing it for a long, long time. And, we keep voting the bums out too. The result? Year in and year out we get more bums and more violations of the constitution.
I understand the need for perseverance. But a change in paradigm would be helpful. We continually elect men and women to office who, at best, fail to live up to their billing and, at worst, intentionally misrepresent themselves and their politics. Then we persevere through their term until we can hopefully vote them out of office. Why wait? Why do we not agressively seek for recalls of these persons at the first hint that they are screwing us? Why give them the benefit of a full term to do damage to the Constitution and to our liberties? I know that a recall is not a simple process and, perhaps we should work within our states to make it a simple process. Until we have men and women of good character and worthiness in government, we need to be able to quickly jerk from office the person who is doing us harm. Make anyone think twice before running that if they go against the will of the people they will be back on the streets before they know it.
Perseverance is more prevailing than violence and many things which cannot be overcome when they are together, yield themselves up when taken little by little. It is not too much to say that all real growth in the spiritual life-all victory over temptation, all confidence and peace in the presence of difficulties and dangers.
Perseverance is a necessary ingredient of success, but it in itself is not the total recipe. If what you are doing is not producing the result you desire, you must keep fighting, but you must also change tactics, ask all the successful military commanders of history.
Shane, thank you for the inspiration. And yet it causes me to wonder if what Einstein said about the definition of insanity applies here: Keep doing the same thing and expecting different results. As long as we keep voting for the system in Washington that has only served to reduce liberty in the last 200 years, we continue to provide for Washington DC the approval of our own enslavement. No one has “fixed” Washington in the last 100 years by being elected to office there.