Wednesday, August 18

Psalm 27:7-9
7 Hear my voice when I call, O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek. 9 Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior.

"Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “Press On” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race." - Calvin Coolidge

I’m getting more convinced to persevere. How about you? Coolidge’s quote can preach and it certainly inspires. If you have not considered writing down those attributes and characteristics of Jesus that you’d like to possess more of please do that today and begin asking, seeking, and knocking for those things that are spiritually good for you!

Luke 11:5-13
5Then he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and he goes to him at midnight and says, 'Friend, lend me three loaves of bread, 6because a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have nothing to set before him.'

7"Then the one inside answers, 'Don't bother me. The door is already locked, and my children are with me in bed. I can't get up and give you anything.' 8I tell you, though he will not get up and give him the bread because he is his friend, yet because of the man's boldness he will get up and give him as much as he needs.

9"So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 10For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

11"Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? 12Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"

Luke writes this immediately following his instructions to his disciples on how to pray…using the “Lords Prayer.” It validates the examples that scripture uses to persist. Look back at another…the persistent widow.

Luke 18
1Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2He said: "In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. 3And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, 'Grant me justice against my adversary.'

4"For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, 'Even though I don't fear God or care about men, 5yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won't eventually wear me out with her coming!' "

6And the Lord said, "Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?"

I really love how the MESSAGE paraphrases verse five…

But because this widow won't quit badgering me, I'd better do something and see that she gets justice—otherwise I'm going to end up beaten black-and-blue by her pounding.

Now we can’t take that out of context and assume that we can “badger” God into giving us what He does not deem fit or right or at the right time for us. However, Jesus is awesome at using story (parables) to communicate his precepts and paradigms.

I think I can be a bit more like the badgering widow. How about you?

Dear Daddy, give me the strength and energy to continue to faithfully approach you with the attributes and characteristics that will make me more and more like Jesus. You know my heart and you know my weakness. Help me to trust you to bless me with what is spiritually good for me. Amen

Bruce McEvoy
Pastor of Family and Serving