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Determination

by Jerry Ousley  
2/16/2008 / Christian Living

They say love is a funny thing and sometimes I'm inclined to agree. Years ago, when Deb and I were dating, a big snow came. We got around twelve inches or better. I was working at that time in a town about five miles away. Still barely out of my teens and used to snow days in school, I felt like I needed a "snow day" bad. So I called in to work and told them that I couldn't make it in. Okay, I suppose that it's alright to take a day off work every once in a while. After all, it's best not to be out on those snow-covered, slick roads if one can keep from it. That's what I reasoned anyway. So I stayed home.

After a few hours I was bored out of my head and began thinking about Debbie. It seemed a shame not to see her with all this time on my hands. So I made up my mind that I was going to pay her a visit. Now she lived in the country about ten miles past the town I worked in. I hopped in the car and made my way up those treacherous roads, drove through the town where I worked and proceeded on to her house. I went down that even more precarious country road and arrived at her home. Of course she hadn't gone to work that day either. As a matter of fact her road had just been cleared because it was covered over with that twelve inches of snow.

As I think about that now it probably would have cost me my job had they known that even though I didn't feel like I could drive five miles to work I was willing to drive fifteen to see Debbie. We do silly things to get what we want don't we? Most of us, when we really want something or want to do something, will find a way to get what we want or do what we want to do. We become determined and we find a way to make it happen.

Thinking about this situation I'm reminded of all the excuses we get when it comes to making Jesus Christ our personal Savior. People find all kinds of excuses don't they? Those excuses run from not having adequate clothing to needing to make changes in our lives but when it comes right down to it they are merely excuses.

I read a little story one time about a pastor who visited a family. He was trying to get them to attend worship with his congregation. The family told him that they would love to come but they were so poor that they just didn't have good enough clothes for themselves or for their children and that they would be embarrassed to go to church. The pastor went to his board and convinced them to give him the money to buy this family a new suit of clothes for each of the family members. They agreed, he found out their sizes and bought some very nice clothing for them. But come Sunday morning the family wasn't in the congregation. Wondering what had happened the concerned pastor went to visit them on Monday and they responded, "Well pastor, those clothes you bought us were so nice we felt like we looked good enough to attend the big church a few blocks from here instead."

The point is that if we are determined that we're going to do something we'll do it. If we really want to come to Jesus Christ we will find a way. It all boils down to that word "determination." Are we determined that we are going to serve Jesus Christ? If we are there are no excuses that will keep us from it. But if we aren't then no amount of talking will convince us otherwise.

It just comes down to the fact that we must want too. If we want too nothing will stop us. There are some in parts of the world that have been forsaken by family, kicked out of their community and persecuted simply because they came to Christ. But they wouldn't put up with that kind of treatment if they weren't convinced that Jesus Christ was the only answer and that they were determined enough to serve Him that no amount of hardship would stop them. They are determined. So what are you determined about?

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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