Mark 10:20-21
“Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Things have really changed over the years. When I attended college I signed up for a full load of eighteen credit hours. I was married at the time and had to work to support the family. In the fifties and sixties, the common work week was 48 hours. That’s right folks, six eight hour days per week. I am exhausted recalling it!
One of the college classes I was signed up for was debate. It sounded a lot easier than calculus or physics, so it appealed to me. I learned that in debates there is always an affirmative and a negative side. You had to be prepared to switch sides in any sort of competition.
Our college had a competition with two other schools in the area and another hard working married man was assigned with me. We were team four, which meant we were rated as the poorest of our teams. (I would agree with that!)
Our first debate was with the number four team from another college. Amazingly we won. Our second debate was with the top rated team in the competition. They had charts, graphs, photos and everything imaginable to support their position. Being on the negative side, I knew we were outclassed. I whispered to my partner to start smirking. Every point they made, we tried to turn into a joke and belittled their contention. Incredibly we won! I have no idea what the judges were thinking! We were the only team from our school to win both debates.
Here is the application I want to make. Do not be deterred when there are negative people who belittle or scorn your stand for Jesus Christ. We need heroes of the faith who are willing to be treated with contempt, yet with unyielding faith in Jesus who loved us enough to come into the world and die on the cross to pay the price for our sins. Now that is the Affirmative side!
Blessings dear hearts. Draw near to God today, trust Him completely and be a blessing!
– – – Pastor Cecil
360-570-0074
PastorCecil@Daily-E-Votional.com
P.S. – You can find previous E-Votionals covering a variety of Scriptures and topics to help you in your walk with the Lord at www.Daily-E-Votional.com.
P.P.S. – I have completed my first book, 100 of Pastor Cecil’s Select Illustrations. The cost is $12.95 plus shipping. You can now order it online by going to https://dailyevotional.com/prior2020/book-by-pastor-cecil . . . You may want to consider this book as a thoughtful gift idea for those who do not have Internet access or as helpful sermon illustrations for your Pastor.
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