Being the sports fan that I am, I'm fascinated by players who seem to have a special "4th Quarter" mentality. When the game comes down to the wire, these players continue to give their all, refuse to be rattled by the pressure, and "make the play" when others don't. Often, it is simply a matter of those players continuing to give their best, even when it seems like there is nothing left to give and little hope remains. They know, however, that with a little extra effort for a relatively small amount of time they can enjoy the sweet feeling of victory, instead of the bitterness of defeat.

This concept has a parallel in the spiritual and temporal challenges we face in life. The scriptural way of saying, "Have a 4th Quarter Mentality" might be "endure to the end." Consistently in the scriptures we are reminded that, if we "endure to the end," we shall be saved. Paraphrased it may be saying something like, "Continue to give the very best you have, right to the very end, and good things will happen." Often we may feel at the end of our rope, like we can't go any further, and yet the Lord beckons us, calls us, and encourages us forward, knowing that if we continue onward he can bless us and lift us.

The most salient example I have of this principle (at least the one most recently on my mind) is putting my kids to sleep at night. I have 3 kids, age 5 and under (5, 4, and 2). Putting these active, wonderful kids to bed can be a trying experience at times (often!) and occurs during a time of the day when my patience and energy are at their lowest levels (a 4th quarter moment for me). If I lose my cool and yell at them when they ask for a drink of water for the 5th time, or when my 2-year old gets out of bed for the 10th time, it affects the spirit with which I, and they, end that day. It leaves a sour taste in my mouth, a bitter feeling of a degree of failure, regardless of the wonderful other things that may have happened that day. When I find a way to overcome my fatigue, however, and petition the Lord's help tp find an additional ounce of patience I thought I lacked, there is a sublimeness in knowing that I left my children feeling loved as they ended another day, a spirit of gratitude and love is maintained in my own heart (instead of one of disappointment and repentance!). I end the day feeling like, with the help of the Lord (the ultimate teammate in our eternal journey), we have won. There are, of course, many other moments in life where I encounter similar challenges of my discipleship.

In the end, we are not perfect and neither are the challenges in life we are called to face. Some of us will inevitably experience more significant "4th Quarter Moments" then others. Just as a champion athlete, however, when we hit these moments arise in our life, we can find within ourselves "the ability to hang in there and keep pressing forward a little bit longer." It is comforting too to know that, through prayer, we can call upon a loving Heavenly Father who wants to help us make it through the "4th Quarters" of our life. As we make this extra effort to dig a little deeper in those challenging moments in our life, we will step a little closer to the ultimate victory of eternal life for which we all are striving and become ever more like our Savior, who, in his own "4th Quarter Moment", won the greatest, toughest, and most significant victory this world will ever know..