Persistence

Mark 10:46-52 "And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way." I love the persistence of Blind Bartimaeus. He knew the One Person that could fix his chronic problem of blindness was Jesus. He knew Jesus was passing near. He knew this was his chance to be whole, to finally be rid of this thing in his life that had caused him so much distress. He knew that if Jesus chose to heal him, his life would be forever changed. So, what did he do? He cried out to Jesus to have mercy on him. When others tried to get him to be quiet, probably embarrassed at the open show of faith and desperation -- he cried even more! I love that. Can you imagine the thoughts of the naysayers? "He's had this problem for so long. If God wanted to heal him, he would have already done it!" or "This man is such an embarrassment to us. God is not interested in touching lives of people like him!" or "He keeps complaining about his problem. Why doesn't he just accept that this is his lot in life and learn to be content?" "Man, this guy is such a power-sucker!" Oh, I'm sure we could all think of more comments along these lines that we have heard and -- gasp -- even said or thought ourselves! So, what is the issue or issues in life that seem to be a recurring theme for you? What is your persistent ailment? I encourage you, friend, never give up. When you think you have exhausted all your options and you yourself are exhausted, and when everyone around you seems to be encouraging you to sit down and be quiet, cry out "all the more a great deal" to Jesus. In faith continue to call upon Him for healing. Never give up. Never, ever give up!