How to Practice Greatness Daily

Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. (Joshua 1:8 NIV)


Persistence brought the Cat in the Hat and the Grinch that Stole Christmas into our living rooms. Most people especially those with young children are familiar with Dr Seuss (real name: Theodor Seuss Geisel), the author of many children's books, with some turned into blockbuster children's movies. When Dr. Seuss wrote his first children's book , And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, 27 publishers rejected it. He never gave up through all the rejections. He kept on writing and seeking a publisher. A friend of his finally helped him to publish his work in 1937. By the time he died in 1991, his books had sold over 200 million copies in 15 languages. His books continue to sell in millions to new generations of children. What a great illustration of the power of consistency and persistence.

Another writer, Stephen King, who has multiple bestselling books that have been turned into Hollywood movies also tells of the fact that he writes everyday. It does not matter whether he feels like it or not. It was a demand of consistency he had placed on himself. Being persistent is one of the secrets of his success.

In our text today, the phrase "day and night" brings to mind a similar theme. Joshua was to keep at meditating on the word continually without quitting, everyday and night. That required being consistent and persistent. Persistence is where power lies in life. Doing something once may feel good but it is doing it over and over without quitting that brings results. This is how tiny drops of water wears out a rock over time. It is how empty clouds fill up with water through evaporation and then pour heavy rains on the earth. Consistency and persistence is how great things are accomplished. The secret of your future is in your daily routine. Consistency is practicing greatness daily.

Solomon, in the book of Ecclesiastes speaks of being consistent :

"Send your grain across the seas, and in time, profits will flow back to you. But divide your investments among many places, for you do not know what risks might lie ahead. When clouds are heavy, the rains come down. Whether a tree falls north or south, it stays where it falls. Farmers who wait for perfect weather never plant. If they watch every cloud, they never harvest. Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both. (Ecclesiastes 11:1-4, 6 NLT)

So the admonition to you today is to stay consistent and persistent in what ever you have been given to do. Stick to meditating, praying, loving, serving, giving, encouraging, working hard and using your talents. Keep at this day and night. Refuse to quit or to be inconsistent. Your rewards will soon show up like grains from across the seas.


Decision of the Day

I will be consistent and persistent. I will not quit. Day after day I will stick to my dreams. I will practice greatness daily. I will be rewarded.