I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Tim. 4:7

I recently found an article on persistence tucked away in my files. I have no idea who the author might be, but I thought I would share some excerpts from the article for you to ponder. I wish I could give proper credit to the author, but I suspect he or she won’t mind if I share it with you . I have inserted my own wording and comments in [brackets].

According to motivational speaker, Jeff Keller, “Persistent action follows commitment—that is, you first must be committed to something before you’ll persist to achieve it. Once you’ve made a commitment to achieve your goal, then you’ll follow through with relentless determination and action until you attain the desired result.”

I recently purchased a copy of William J. Bennett’s book, The Children’s Book of Virtues. I love to read one of its stories to my grandchildren—the fable of the tortoise and hare. You will remember that the persistent effort of the tortoise paid off in attaining the finish line while the much fleeter hare was [sleeping] along the trail.

The virtue of persistence also applies to the efforts of parents and grandparents to build meaningful connections with our progeny [he’s referring to the children]. The father [or grandfather] who takes one afternoon off to attend a school extracurricular activity has made a great deposit in the ‘relationship account’. [Imagine the impact when you persistently attend as many events as you can].

If you have not been as persistent in building [and maintaining] connections with your grandchildren as you wish you had [guilty here], don’t punish yourself. Take comfort in this piece of wisdom: “Our greatest glory lies not in never failing, but in rising every time we fall” (unknown). [It mainly lies in making God look great and glorious in their eyes.]

Charles Kettering, one of the great inventors of the twentieth century said, “Every time you tear a leaf off a calendar, you present a new place for new ideas and progress.” There is a wonderful opportunity lying ahead of us—the opportunity to strengthen our relational connection [especially with our adult children and grandchildren]… Your children and grandchildren won’t care if you finish first, [only that you finish well. This author actually said “put them first”, but I think it’s not a question of putting them ‘first’, but making sure they know they are loved and dearly treasured. They will know that you have finished well when you have left them the greatest inheritance of all—hope, faith and love in Christ Jesus, their Savior.]

GRANDPAUSE: When I have learned to love God better than my earthly dearest, I shall love my earthly dearest better than I do now. – C.S. Lewis