Jesus said, “He that endureth to the end shall be saved” (Matthew 10:22, 2 Nephi 31:15, 3 Nephi 15:9, 3 Nephi 27:6, 16).
The apostle Paul elaborated on this principle in his epistle to the Romans. If we “by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory, honor, and immortality,” he taught, then God will give us “eternal life,” (Romans 2:7). So enduring to the end is an active process: continuing to do good with an ongoing commitment to eternal goals.
Elder Michael J. Teh explained:
Enduring to the end is not about completing a gospel checklist and then saying: “I’m good. All I have to do now is coast along and maintain it.” It is about continually learning and growing. The gospel of Jesus Christ is all about constant repentance and change. Therefore it is an uphill climb rather than a stroll in the park.
“These Are Your Days,” Brigham Young University—Idaho Devotional Address, 9 June 2015
Elder Teh added that sometimes, when we feel too tired to do what we should, we need to find our “second wind” and keep moving forward. He also suggested that it’s important to maintain a positive attitude while we endure: “I sometimes tease and say maybe instead of ‘enduring to the end’, we should be ‘enjoying to the end.'”
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf listed some of the good things we can do as we patiently continue moving forward:
To endure to the end, we need to trust our Father in Heaven and make wise choices, including paying our tithes and offerings, honoring our temple covenants, and serving the Lord and one another willingly and faithfully in our Church callings and responsibilities. It means strength of character, selflessness, and humility; it means integrity and honesty to the Lord and our fellowmen. It means making our homes strong places of defense and a refuge against worldly evils; it means loving and honoring our spouses and children….
The blessings that come to us from enduring to the end in this life are real and very significant, and for the life to come they are beyond our comprehension.
“Have We Not Reason to Rejoice?” General Conference, October 2007
Today, I will patiently persist in doing good. I will strive for continuous improvement, look for my second wind when I’m tired, and move forward with a positive attitude, “enjoying to the end.”