Don't Quit
As a boy I shot thousands of rounds through my .22 rifle, but I never shot at anything that was moving. I had never shot clay pigeons with a shotgun, and only had a few 'misses' to my credit on flying pheasants. After college, when I moved to Montana, I found myself in country full of fish and game beyond anything I could have imagined.
A rancher invited me to hunt deer with his family, but the only gun I had was an open sight shotgun with a slug barrel. They all had scoped rifles. To demonstrate the accuracy of the slug barrel I hit the bullseye on a target at 75 yards. 15 minutes later I missed a beautiful buck several times as it scampered away from me. IF I'd had a rest and IF the buck had stood still, THEN I would have got him.
I was embarrassed. I could have quit. But I knew that the solution to my bad shooting was NOT to quit shooting. Life seldom gives us perfect circumstances. It seldom gives us a stationary target. This is why our grandparents' grandparents taught them, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!"
In our quest to become fully devoted followers of Christ, there will be many moments of failure. At times it will be our lack of experience or expertise, at other times our sin will get in the way. Don't quit. Don't stop pursuing the life God desires for you, and you will be blessed! -Pastor Brad
Written on December 17
Posted in Daily Devotions