- Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. I COR 9:24 ESV
Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith Hebrews 12:1-11
1Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Do Not Grow Weary
3Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted. 4In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
nor be weary when reproved by him.
6For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
and chastises every son whom he receives.”
7It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? 10For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. 11For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
re·lent·less
riˈlentləs/adjective
adjective: relentless
1.
oppressively constant; incessant.
“the relentless heat of the desert”
synonyms: |
persistent, continuing, constant, continual, continuous, nonstop, never-ending, unabating, interminable, incessant, unceasing, endless, unending, unremitting, unrelenting, unrelieved; |
To Find My Path of Unrelenting Relentlessness, I first Had To Relent
Part of dying to my old self meant putting away my old self-habits. I know that the only way to do that, and make it stick, is through the power of the Holy Spirit of God. And THAT has to be what I call “Heart Surgery”. For the change to keep, my Heart Beliefs HAVE to align and harmonize with the Spirit of the Living God. From there, whatever characteristics I stored in my mind are overwritten with the Character of Christ. When that happens, my body follows.
To relent is to soften your position on certain fast held beliefs. To relent is similar to repent, which is to change your mind. The difference is, I must be willing to soften my unrelentingly relentless stance on a wrong belief, it is when I am unrepentantly unrelentless that a character other than that of Christ is revealed in me.
This is why it is written: Ezekiel 36:29 NIV – ‘“I’m going to give you a new heart, and I’m going to give you a new spirit within all of your deepest parts. I’ll remove that rock-hard heart of yours and replace it with one that’s sensitive to me.” Before I can learn to relent, I have to submit to the Heart Surgery of the Holy Spirit, and be recreated, which is where II Corinthians 5:17 is revealed in you: “Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has come”
As a new creation, with a new Spirit and a heart sensitive to the voice of God, you can be remade into the image of Christ. There are dangers in this, though. The Spirit of God is gentle, and will never force its will on you without your consent. You can ignore it, you can deny it, you can do whatever you want. If you are willing to relent, then you will be changed, gently, without condemnation, and grow to be more like Christ.
WHAT AM I WILLING TO BE RELENTLESS ABOUT.
At Cates Control Solutions, Relentless is defined as follows: “RELENTLESS: We will not back down from our pursuit of excellence in every aspect of our business.”
So I wondered where that is found in scripture. Here is an example – Philippians 4:8“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable — if there is any moral excellence and if there is any praise — dwell on these things.”
In order to pursue excellence, I must relent on my attitude that “Good Enough is Good Enough.” I must find where EXCELLENCE is taught in the Bible, and I must let the Spirit of God write these things on my heart.
Excellence, like any other Core Value, is as meaningful as you will allow it to be, and is only as effective as it is written on my heart. It is my hard-earned experience that I cannot fake this value of the relentless pursuit of Excellence.
Click the word EXCELLENCE, to see what the Bible has to say about Excellence.
Frankly, left to my own devices, Good Enough is Good Enough for me. It is not in my carnal nature to want excellence, or to pursue excellence. This can only come from a changed heart. It is not just for the sake of Cates Control Solutions that I chase, unrelentingly, after Excellence. It is first, and foremost because the Spirit of the Living God is pursuing excellence in me.
“RELENTLESS” and all the other Core Values becomes real, not because it is a rule at the office. It stops being mere words when the Spirit of God is allowed to turn my heart of stone into a heart that is sensitive to the will of God. If I approach all of the Cates Core Values this way, then it will not matter of this is posted on our wall, or the back of my business card. I will not have to be reminded by the “Thought Police” to pursue this, either. It will simply manifest itself as the natural outcome of my unrelentingly relentless pursuit of the Character of Christ.
My Prayer: Dearest God, My Father, I pray in the name of Jesus Christ, my Lord, My Savior, and my Brother, that I relent in my stiff-necked will, and turn toward your voice, and become unrelentingly obsessed with all the things you say are excellent. I know all the qualities exist in the Person and Likeness of Christ. Lead me, Dear God, to be just like your son. – AMEN
Now, Let’s Be About It!
I love you in the name of Jesus Christ.
David G. Perkins
David G. Perkins 