May 18, 2026
Monday, May 18
Some years ago, the Army brought in a psychologist named Angela Duckworth to study the cadets at West Point, where our top military leaders are trained. Every year, around 14,000 people apply to West Point, and only around 1200 are accepted. Almost all are star athletes. All are so intelligent, they could get into virtually any university in the country. The first day at West Point, cadets have 90 seconds to say goodbye to their parents, then they embark on what is known as Beast: A seven-week training that is designed to shape them into West Point material. Seven days a week, From 5 AM to 10 at night, they are either in the classroom or on the athletic field enduring physical training, with no rest aside from mealtimes.
The leaders at West Point had a problem they wanted Dr. Duckworth to solve: What causes some cadets to drop out before Beast is over? Conventional wisdom says the strongest and smartest cadets would survive, but that wasn’t the case. Every year, some of their most talented cadets flamed out. Duckworth found that the deciding factor couldn’t be measured by an SAT or a chin-up bar. Instead, it was what she called grit, a combination of perseverance and passion.
Grit is not a biblical word, but it reminds me of two concepts the Bible talks about over and over: steadfastness (I will not be moved) and endurance (I will not be stopped). Today, we need grit more than ever. Many of us are the children or grandchildren of The Greatest Generation, who survived a Great Depression and won a World War, and ushered our nation into the greatest freedom and affluence in world history. Yet our privilege, so hard-won by our ancestors, hasn’t trained us to be gritty, and it shows. When times get tough, we quit.
Marriages end.
Churches dwindle and die.
People have good intentions to change and grow, but never follow through.
Christians begin transforming relationships, then drop them.
We get stuck in a rut of self-pity and despair.
If you’ve experienced any of these things, I’m not mocking or condemning you. But I am challenging you to seek more from yourself through God’s power. For the next several weeks, we’ll look at some specific situations in life where steadfastness and endurance are needed.
“Lord, this world is often an unfriendly place. I admit it’s easier to give up than it is to do your will. So I need for your Holy Spirit to produce grit in me, so I won’t give up, and won’t be moved. In your holy name I pray, amen.”
Senior Pastor
First Baptist Conroe
More from Pastor Jeff at his website: jeffbergerwriting.com
