Cast down, but not destroyed…
(2Corinthians 4:9)

     During the 1967 World Figure Skating Championships held in Vienna, Austria, Peggy Fleming (b: 1948) was performing a challenging double axel jump when she lost her balance and went down onto the ice. As the audience anxiously looked on, Peggy got back up and continued her performance. When it came time for her to do another double axel, she dazzled the crowd with a perfect execution. Because she refused to quit when she was down, her chances of winning were not destroyed. Her persistence won her the world ice skating championship for a second year in a row.
     Like Peggy Fleming, you may also encounter a challenge that brings you down. If so, "be not dismayed" (Isa 41:10) for "God... comforteth those that are cast down" (2Cor 7:6). He "shall lift you up" (Jam 4:10) and cause you to "triumph in Christ" (2Cor 2:14). Your troubles may cast you down momentarily but they can never destroy you if you refuse to quit, "because greater is Jesus Christ who is in you, than satan that is in the world" (1Jn 4:4).