Key Bible Verse: But Jesus told him, "Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God" (Luke 9:62). Bonus Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:25-27

When I was 14, the newspaper manager came to my home to confront me about my unpaid delivery bill and missed customers. "What are you going to do with your life?" the craggy old guy demanded, "you're a disaster!" I looked him in the eye and said, "I'm going to college on a basketball scholarship." "That's a laugh!" he responded as he threw up his hands and walked out.

That's when I determined to practice the disciplines of basketball. My mother made $39 a week, and unless I was good enough to get a basketball scholarship to university, I was going into the Army and to Vietnam. I played basketball every day, year-round for the next four years—in back yards, alleys, school yards, gymnasiums, and in the winter in converted haylofts. I wasn't as talented as other athletes, but I practiced longer and harder. So when I walked onto the college campus, I'd already paid the bill with four years of perseverance.

I was able to keep focused on my goal because it was clear and concrete. But very often spiritual goals are ethereal and hard to grasp. Still the key is the same: keep your vision in mind and stay at the disciplines you deeply believe will pay off one day.

—Bill Hull in Choose the Life

My Response: A discipline I need to adopt and stick with is …

Adapted from Choose the Life (Baker, 2004) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Help me, Lord, to so focus on Your promises that I'm no longer tempted to give up.

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