Stubborn or persistent?

When I do funerals I often come upon a characteristic called stubbornness. I usually say that it is one of my favorites because it is a family heritage of mine. Dad, granddad and so on. Some of us are proudly stubborn and some of us are just stubborn and mule headed. There is stubborn that gets you through tough times and difficulties and there is stubbornness that will not listen to wise counsel, will not change and so on.

We have to be stubborn or at least persistent to get through this life. "Tough times don't last, tough people do." Heard that one a few times. But what about that which I have called stubborn which is really more properly called persistence? Most endeavors fail because they are either not begun or they are not finished. Persistence is what gets us through discouragement or even around it.

Some things about persistence from the book The Centurion Principles:
Destiny has a way of rewarding the persistent.

• Persistence means valuing your purpose more than caring about who values you.

• Persistence means you live according to the destiny you have been called to rather than the expediency of short - term profit. ( you can make more money, but you cannot buy more years)

• Persistence means you have a vision, have been given a vision, or have developed a vision that consumes your waking moments.

• Persistence means you are capable of enduring suffering and doubt and derision and even hate. People who are persistent threaten those whose character is too weak to develop this Centurion quality.

Stubborn is stiff, unbending, unyielding, unreasonably obstinate in will or opinion.
Persistence is refusing to give up or let go, especially on a dream or a goal. You keep coming back, don't give up and may even keep learning what you need to know along the way to get the job done.

So are you stubborn or persistent or a hybrid?

I like being stubborn, but maybe I need to be more persistent.

Shalom to YOU.