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And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. Hebrews 10:24-25 In the South Pacific, there are literally tens of thousands of tiny islands. So after World War II, it took some time for the news of the war’s end to spread. But for one man, it took 29 years! Hiroo Onoda was a soldier in the Japanese army. He was given a strict order to hide on one of the small islands and carry out guerilla warfare for the remainder of the war. But he had done such a good job at hiding that the surrendered Japanese army couldn’t find him when the war was over. So they declared him to be dead! In 1974, Onoda was found with his tattered uniform, still-working rifle, 500 rounds of ammunition, and a few hand grenades. He wept aloud when he found out the war was over. Isolation is a scary thing. But how many Christians live in a state of isolation today and don’t even know it? The Scripture commands you and me to live in community. This is so crucial because just like Hiroo Onoda was stuck in a state of factual ignorance, you can very easily become stuck in a state of spiritual ignorance. So who is your community? Who are some people in your life that encourage you and stir you up to love and good works? It’s my prayer that you would find someone like that in your life.   FIND AN ENCOURAGER IN YOUR LIFE AND ALLOW THEM TO SHARPEN YOU CONSISTENTLY.

Faint, Yet Pursuing

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“And Gideon came to Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing them. And he said unto the men of Succoth, Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they be faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, kings of Midian. And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thine hand, that we should give bread unto thine army?”
Judges 8:4–6

After the amazing victory God gave Gideon over the Midianites, most of the enemy army was destroyed, but those who remained alive fled. Rather than settling for a partial victory, Gideon and his band of three hundred courageous warriors chased after them. Despite the fact that they were tired, hungry, and greatly outnumbered, they were committed to tracking down and destroying those who threatened their land. Even when they were refused help by those who could and should have aided them, they simply refused to stop.
Dr. Bob Jones, Sr. said, “The test of a man’s character is what it takes to stop him.” Every worthwhile task is going to encounter obstacles and difficulties. There will always be excuses that could be made for quitting. There will always be reasons why we have done enough and someone else should pick up the cause and run with it. There will always be fatigue from labor and a desire to stop and rest. There will always be those who could help, but choose to criticize instead. But if the cause is burning in our hearts, we will not stop.
Sometimes we give up too easily in pursuing opportunities which God has placed in our paths because we become weary in overcoming the obstacles. We should remember Gideon and his men who, even when they were faint, continued pursuing.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

The thing that stops people is not an obstacle, but a lack of commitment to their cause