Faith & Perseverance - Do you have them?

In my current textbook for a Global University course I've been taking (Relationships & Ethics in Ministry), I read a chapter on Evangelism that talked extensively about the need for us to have faith. The author cited a story by Michael Cassidy, a South African who founded African Enterprise. He used the story to highlight the need for having faith while speaking to a person wavering in his belief in the Resurrection. It is in Chapter 10, pg. 125. The story goes like this:


[The following letter was found many years ago in a tin, tied to an old pump on a remote dessert trail]

This pump is all right as of June 1932. I put a new sucker washer into it and it ought to last five years. But the washer dries out and the pump has to be primed. Under the white rock, I buried a bottle of water, out of the sun and cork end up. There is enough water in it to prime the pump, but not enough if you drink some first. Pour about one-fourth and let her soak to wet the leather. Then pour in the rest medium fast and pump like crazy. You will get water. The well has never run dry. Have faith. When you get watered up, fill the bottle and put it back as you found it for the next feller. Desert Pete. 

What would you do? Would you go for the inadequate supply or the unlimited supply supposedly down in the ground? The thirsty man had to make a decision. Did he have faith and follow the instructions? If he was short sighted, he would go for the short supply. If he truly saw the big picture, he would take that leap of faith and use the pump. Of course, we don't know his fate.

We are also in a dessert with a well. We too have to make a decision. Those who have chosen the well are now drinking. Those who haven't are still waiting for that water. Jesus told us:

"Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water that I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water that I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life" (John 4:13-14).

Are we and those around us drinking from the bottle of water or are we drinking from the spring? What do we do if the nonbelievers are not willing to take that leap of faith? We must work on continuing our relationship with them. We must continue to connect and show that we care about them. We need to persevere in the task assigned to us by Jesus.  We need to continue to model the example set for us by Him and lead them to the well..

Get us past it...

I recently read a daily devotional that spoke to my heart. It was written by Dr. Michael Youssef, PhD. When I read it, I felt that I needed to share it with all of you...

The Obstacles of Worldly Thinking

 

By Michael Youssef, Ph.D.

 

      Resisting the world's pressures can be painful. Paul warns, "Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil men and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived" (2 Timothy 3:12-13).

      Jesus gives a similar warning: "If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you" (John 15:18-19).

      When we are following God's principles for living, when we seek purity and righteousness, when we act and speak with integrity, the world is going to resent us for it. We cannot expect a world in darkness to understand our desire to walk in the light. Regardless of the cynicism or ridicule we face, God calls us to His standard of obedience and righteousness.

      We don't have to do this work alone. The Holy Spirit will guide us through the obstacles of worldly thinking. The Bible will show us the truth when we are confronted by lies. "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work" (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

      The more time we spend in God's Word, the more our hearts and minds align with God. Choosing to do the right thing becomes easier when we begin to understand God's ways. Standing for the truth becomes easier when we find encouragement and strength in Scripture. But apart from God, we will quickly become enmeshed in the world's ways of thinking.

      Prayer: God, thank You for Your Spirit which is with me to guide me through the obstacles of worldly thinking. Thank You for Your Word which exposes the lies around me. Help me to stay in Your Word so that my heart and mind will be aligned with yours. Amen. In the name of Jesus. Amen.

This is a battle that we all have to face. It is not a once-in-a-lifetime kind of battle. It is a continuous fight against the obstacles that are thrown in our path by the world. I know that we have all faced the those difficult times. We need to stay in the word and the Holy Spirit will keep the world at bay.