A
brother known for his ability to motivate others was confronted
one day by an angry sister who said, ”I don’t believe in all this
motivational talk because it does not last.” Someone else who overheard
the conversation replied, ”Well, neither do baths, but they are
good to take just the same.”
Just
because a thing does not last, is no justification for not doing
it again. Almost everything worthwhile requires repetition. Most
people believe in weeding their garden and mowing their lawn, but
they know it will need doing again soon.
To
the tried and true saying about, ”Anything worth doing, is worth
doing right,” we might add, ”Anything worth doing must be done over
and over again.”
This
must be the reason that Paul instructs us that we are ”by patient
continuance in well doing, [to] seek for glory and honor and immortality.”
Our
acceptance by the Lord Jesus Christ will not be based upon the fact
that we did one great spectacular good deed for him, but rather,
that we patiently continued in well doing every day.
This
is the reason we use the Bible Companion daily to lead us in our
systematic reading of the Scriptures. We need to realize that we
are all leaky vessels and if we do not constantly replenish ourselves
with the oil of the word, then we will surely run dry and our lamps
will go out while we wait for the bridegroom to come.
We
need to be motivated to do right, and we need to do it over and
over again. We remember coming home from the Bible school and returning
to work just bubbling over with enthusiasm for the Truth. One of
our associates observed how pumped up we were and commented that
we seemed to be ”glowing.”
A few days later, after being buried in the day to day work that
piles up when one is away, he passed by our office, looked in, and
cupping his hands around his mouth whispered in a loud voice, ”the
glow has gone.”
The glow does go, and we must constantly do those things that bring
back the glow. When Moses had been on the holy mount with the LORD,
he returned to the people and he did not know that ”the skin of
his face shone.” We read that ”the children of Israel saw the face
of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone.” Since we are to be
the light of the world, we ought to work to do those things over
and over again that will make our face shine with the reflection
of our LORD.
Those
out in the sun soon find their faces shining from its rays. If we
allow the Son of God to shine upon us, then we should also reflect
that fact in our countenances. Even after having been in the sun,
the glow will go if we stay out of its rays.
Our glow will also fade if we do not continually pursue those things
that help us to reflect the glory of God. The daily reading of the
Word, prayer, the memorial service, Bible classes, Sunday school
and Bible school are all important helps and must be repeated over
and over to keep us glowing.
Let us resolve patiently to continue in well doing so that ”the
LORD will make his face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us.”
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