Tag Archives: struggle

Bible Gleanings, devotions

Keep Ducking | Bible Gleanings | October 11-12, 2025

Leave a comment

I always duck my head when I put away the dishes. But not because my wife stealthily wields a frying pan, eager to cash in on some life insurance. No, I instinctively lower my head because of our poorly placed cabinet door—and my poor memory of its existence. It sits right above the dishwasher, and I have a bad habit of leaving it open while I put away plates, mugs, and cutlery. And having hit my head on it many times, I have learned to automatically duck—even while it is closed.

And the other day, the old adversary vanquished me again. Vibing to some good music with my headphones on, I forgot to duck, and a thud echoed across the kitchen. And a pulsing abrasion on my balding head served as a reminder that no matter how many times you’ve learned your lesson, old problems can still get you. Many dangers remain in place, waiting for you to forget they are there.

Paul the apostle understood this problem profoundly. After twenty-something years of continual Christian maturity, he admitted in Romans that he still “hit his head” from time to time:

“For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate . . . For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing . . . So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand” (Rom. 7:15, 18-19, 21).

Struggling with the same old sins and suffering from setbacks is a part of every saint’s sanctification. Sin isn’t going away until we are away from our bodies and present with the Lord (2 Cor. 5:8). Until then, we must remain diligently watchful and continue ducking our heads to avoid sin and the headaches it induces. The real danger is thinking there is no danger—that is precisely when sin inflicts another bruise on our heads. As Paul also said, “Therefore let anyone who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall” (1 Cor. 10:12). 

And when sin hits us on the head due to our carelessness, the good news is that God will lift us up by His grace. The writer of Proverbs 24:16 promised, “For the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity.” The psalmist likewise assured, “Though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand” (Psalm 37:24). Keep ducking your head, Christian. And when you forget to do so, remember that God raises the humble heads of those who have been wounded by their besetting sins.

Brandon is the pastor of Bandana Baptist Church in Bandana, Kentucky, where he lives with his wife, Dakota, and their three dogs, Susie, Aries, and Dot. Brandon and Dakota are also foster parents through Sunrise Children’s Services of Kentucky. Brandon is also a published author and a religious columnist for the Advance Yeoman newspaper in Ballard County, Kentucky. He is also a devotional contributor for Kentucky Today, a news publication of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. His columns are also featured in the Times-Argus newspaper of Central City, Kentucky, West Kentucky News of western Kentucky, and the online blog, Reforming the Heart.

Bible Gleanings, devotions

Endure Until the End | Bible Gleanings | August 1-2, 2025

Leave a comment

Wham! A gouging left-hook pierced his right eye. Boof! The world champion heavy-weight boxer threw another lethal strike. “Raaah! Whooo!” shouted the crowd, as Apollo Creed and Rocky Balboa battled in the ring. Bif! Bam! Bop! With machine-like accuracy, Creed hammered Rocky’s bloodied face. And then Rocky went down, but he was not out—he slowly rose to his feet, weary but determined.

His handlers begged him to throw in the towel. But with blood streaming down his face, Rocky warned, “You stop this fight, and I’ll kill you!” Then he launched into Creed with the fury of a mad tiger. But even after fifteen rounds of ruthless beating, neither boxer delivered a knockout, and the fight was eventually called. The announcer declared from the mic, “Tonight we have had the privilege of witnessing the greatest exhibition of guts and stamina in the history of the ring!”

Rocky Balboa didn’t win the match, but he finished it. He endured until the end. He wasn’t trying to knock out Apollo Creed. He simply sought to go the distance and prove he could take a beating. To him, finishing well was better than winning every round.

Rocky was right, and the Scripture also teaches that endurance is better than winning every fight. When Paul the apostle was at death’s door, he did not say, “I have won the good fight,” but rather, “I have fought the good fight” (2 Tim. 4:7). The Christian life is not about avoiding failure entirely—it’s about getting back up in faith after being knocked down. True believers stay in the ring and rise for the next round through the strengthening grace of God. As Proverbs 24:16 says, “For the righteous falls seven times and rises again.”

No Christian can always slay their flesh, defeat the devil, or triumph over the enticements of this sinful world. But even when struck down, beaten-up believers can rise again because, “though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand” (Psalm 37:24). When flattened out on the canvas, the believer can say, “Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me” (Micah 7:8). True believers can testify with Paul: “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor. 4:8-9).

So, don’t give up. Keep on keeping on. Endure until you hear the final bell—the trumpet of Christ’s return (1 Cor. 15:52). Finishing well is better than a perfect performance. As Rocky himself said, “It’s not about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward.”

Brandon is the pastor of Bandana Baptist Church in Bandana, Kentucky, where he lives with his wife, Dakota, and their three dogs, Susie, Aries, and Dot. Brandon and Dakota are also foster parents through Sunrise Children’s Services of Kentucky. Brandon is also a published author and a religious columnist for the Advance Yeoman newspaper in Ballard County, Kentucky. He is also a devotional contributor for Kentucky Today, a news publication of the Kentucky Baptist Convention. His columns are also featured in the Times-Argus newspaper of Central City, Kentucky, West Kentucky News of western Kentucky, and the online blog, Reforming the Heart.