Don’t you know that the runners in a stadium all race, but only one receives the prize?  Run in such a way to win the prize.  Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything.  However, they do it to receive a crown that will fade away, but we a crown that will never face away.  Therefore I do not run like one who runs aimlessly or box like one beating the air.  Instead, I discipline my body and bring it under strict control, so that after preaching to others, I myself will not be disqualified.  1 Corinthians 9:24-27 HCSB

For 11 years, I had a dog that was part cocker spaniel and part poodle.  He was a great dog.  He was always happy to see me when I got home.  He never wandered too far.  He was easily trained to play fetch and easily potty trained.  But when he died, I vowed to not get another dog until I retired.  My reason for this was because when he died, I realized that I was not home enough to give a dog the time and attention they deserve.  So fast forward 13 years and I am nearing retirement and searching for another cock-a-poo or cocker spaniel.  My nephew informs me that while working he ran upon a beagle in a cemetery that was starving to death and covered in fleas and ticks.  After a few days when he realized that no one was coming to claim the little guy, he and his wife had pity on him and went and brought him home.  They had a slight problem.  They had two Maltese puppies already and could not keep this beagle long term so they asked me to take Buddy.  On December 23, 2010, we brought Buddy home and he has been with us ever since.  If you have never had a beagle that lived inside, you may be surprised should you get one.  One thing I learned very quickly is that they follow their nose.  They have a super sense of smell.  I am told that a beagle’s sense of smell is 1,000-10,000 times stronger than that of a human.  This scent controls them.  They get focused on a scent, particularly that of a rabbit or deer and they will allow nothing to get in their way.  They will dig under a fence or get through any other way they can.  They will trail the scent through woods and any type of terrain.  They will be oblivious to the things around them while they are tracking this smell.  One night right after we got Buddy, he began howling at around 11:00, my husband had to be up for work the next morning at 3:30 and I knew that if Buddy woke him this would not go well.  I brought him into the living room and tried to calm him down, but he continued to howl.  I finally decided to put him in the garage hoping that at least if he howled we wouldn’t hear it.  So I brought him into our garage and returned to our bedroom.  No howling, so I figured he had curled up on his bed and went to sleep.  The next morning at 5 am, I got up and went to check on him.  He was quietly sitting in the corner of the garage with a can of dog food.  He had begun chewing around the can like a little doggy can opener.  He had come about 1/4 of an inch from having the can opened all the way.  What determination, right?  He didn’t see this can and think, “I wish some human with a can opener would come out and open this can.”  No indeed.  He thought, “I can do it.  I have teeth and with a little time and patience and determination I can open this can myself.”  Now there are many more stories of Buddy and his determination.  My friends have often said that I should write a book about Buddy and some day I just might.  But this little beagle has taught me something.  Never give up.

Now I will admit that my determination used to extend to things like getting the perfect outfit to wear or the perfect pair of shoes.  I have been known to drive an hour away to get the size I need.  Thanks to the internet, we can now have these things delivered to our door.  I now try to keep my focus on God.  When we set our sights on God and begin to work for Him, the devil will try to stop us.  The devil will send distractions our way.  We must be determined.  We must stay focused. We must accept God’s timing when things take longer than we would like for them to take.  We must keep on keeping on.

When we step out for God and try to live for Him and witness to others, we know that the devil will come against us.  We know that there will be obstacles in our way, but we must be have that grim determination.  We must know that God has got this and He’s got us.  He will not let us fail.  We may have setbacks along the way, but we will not fail.  My prayer for you today is that you have grim determination. I pray that you, like Buddy, don’t allow yourself to become distracted.  I pray that you can give your all to God knowing that He will take care of everything else.

Have a great day!