Survivor is one of my favorite shows. Even after forty seasons, it still excites and captivates me. I remember an episode that even inspired me. During an immunity challenge, one contestant fell far behind, and everyone believed she wouldn’t make it. But she refused to quit. She plodded her way through the challenge and eventually caught with the others at the last puzzle. And against all the odds, she solved it first and won. The host then said, “that’s why you never give up!”
These words also apply to our spiritual life because we must always persevere and remain faithful despite the obstacles we face. In her book Everyday Faithfulness: The Beauty of Ordinary Perseverance in a Demanding World, Glenna Marshall shows us what it looks like persevering in the faith.
The Holy Scriptures encourage us to be patient wait for Christ’s return. James 5:7-8 says, “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”
It’s often easier said than done, especially when we go through seasons of intense suffering. Nevertheless, believers must persevere until the end. And it begins with everyday faithfulness—the little ordinary things we do daily to obey God.
Marshall says, “Faithfulness is an everyday calling. It is regular, it’s ordinary, it’s taking a really long view of the Christian life. It’s reshaping our desires for immediate fruit and committing to following Jesus for the long haul. It’s getting up every single day and believing that God is your treasure, that the gospel of Jesus is worth your every breath, and that he is enough. Faithfulness is doing this again tomorrow and the next day and ten years from now. Faithfulness is ordinary. It’s unremarkable. It plods. It is also precious in the sight of the God who works out lifelong sanctifying perseverance in your life for your good and his glory.”
Inspired from her own experience with spiritual dryness, Marshall wrote this book to provides us with practical ways to develop everyday habits that will grow us spiritually. And thus equip us to persevere until the Lord returns.
She explores seven seasons where we can discipline ourselves to build habits of faithfulness. These are: when you’re just not disciplined, when your hands are full, when you’re waiting, when you doubt, when you’re suffering, when your heart is cold, and when you sin. She concludes her book with an exhortation to be faithful to the end.
Marshall’s writing is easy to read, compelling, and relatable. Reading Everyday Faithfulness felt like sitting at the feet of an older sister and receiving precious pieces of advice about living for the Lord. She gives several practical—not pragmatic—tips that are rooted in Scripture and sound theology.
The chapter on being faithful when we sin particularly affected me. Having fallen into an old sin a few days before reading this book, it encouraged me to repent and persevere. It also provided me with wisdom and practical steps to flee from sin daily. As she said, “Faithfulness is not found in living perfectly but in killing sin regularly.”
The book felt a bit repetitive since every application comprised Bible reading, praying, and going to Church (which is all we need). But she presented them a little differently in each chapter to make them more applicable to the season at hand.
Everyday faithfulness encouraged me to persevere in my faith and build everyday habits that will sustain me to the end. I recommend it for new and season believers.
*Crossway publishers graciously gave me a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.*
