Life for Christians in this fallen world is a mixture of joy and sorrow, of blessing and suffering, of triumph and tragedy. For all people, fulfilling relationships, pleasant times, and exhilarating experiences are mitigated by the reality that man faces trouble and tribulation. (Job 5:7). Those who are able to cope successfully with life’s difficulties are those who learn how the strategy to steadfastness. This passage reveals the strategy for facing trouble like Paul did, of being “troubled on every side, yet not distressed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed…” (2 Cor. 4:8-9). Those who learn the strategy to steadfastness will experience the thrill of being on the edge of death every moment, yet at the height of life.