Weekday Devotionals

Thrive Devotional written by Tony Tolvo

VERSE:
Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. 1Co 9:24 NKJV
I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Phl 3:14 KJV

Thought:
All of us that have come to faith in Jesus have already received the prize of having our sins forgiven. We are changed from the inside out. For some of us it seems like it happens in the blink of an eye. But coming to faith in Jesus is just the beginning of what God has for us here on the earth. We have much to accomplish for him as we press on toward the high calling of Jesus Christ. If that were not so, He would have just raptured all of us straight into heaven as soon as we said the Amen from the sinner’s prayer.

As I was contemplating the bullet points from Pastor Pete’s message this past Sunday, I thought of how those things apply to any accomplishment of significance in life.

The student that wishes to excel and gain mastery in any field to the point of obtaining a degree must do the little things like study and review consistently…every day. Apply themselves to those little activities with their best effort and keep getting better. Then, over time, they receive their degree and go on to the prize of becoming a Doctor, Lawyer, Pastor, successful in Business…etc.

When I was in school, I didn’t always do this. All too often my lack of discipline in doing the little things consistently would produce a very late night of cramming…not studying. I would cram and cram the night before a test and then hope the stuff I had just crammed into my brain wouldn’t leak out before I could complete the test.  

Most of us can get by on cramming for a season but the inconsistency in doing the little things will eventually catch up with us. What if I had become a farmer and continued on this path? I would have failed miserably.

When a farmer is pressing on toward the “prize” of a bountiful harvest, he too must do the “little things”. I’m not a farmer so I’m not sure what those little things are but I did a quick search to find out. Here’s a short list:

•Crop selection
•Land preparation
•Seed Selection
•Seed Sowing
•Irrigation
•Fertilization
•More Irrigation
•More Fertilization
•Harvesting

Imagine where we’d be if the Farmer chose to not do the little things but instead tried to cram everything in a week before the harvest… Well, of course we’d all starve.

We all have those physical, earthly prizes for which we strive. We want to bring value to our employers or customers and provide for our families. Those are worthwhile pursuits.

But as Christians, we also have a race to run. We need to run that race in such a manner as to receive the prize. That prize being an eternity with Jesus and all of our loved ones in Christ that have gone before us and will come after. What a Glorious time that will be!

Application/Challenge:
Start today. Make a short list of three little things you can do consistently to improve the manner in which you run the race toward the “High Calling in Christ Jesus”

Here’s my list:
1 – Get to bed earlier. No later than 10 PM so I can be more rested in the morning to be more intentional during my morning devotional time.
2 – Watch Less TV
3 – Read More books

What’s your list?

Love y’all…
tony

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