8 Seconds

I am not a sports fan.

At all.

But I would watch Rodeo if I had to.

I don't know why it has always fascinated me except that I have always secretly wanted a horse since I was a little girl.

When we were bored as children and said to our Mom, "I'm BORED!" she would always respond, "Read the encyclopedias."

So we did.

I learned exactly how to ride a horse by reading the encyclopedia on the subject over and over.

When the time came for me to actually ride a horse, I was able to mount right up. The guy who owned the horse couldn't believe it.

But, man, I had been studying the subject for years.

I was especially enthralled with Bull Riding.

How nuts do you have to be to willingly climb on the back of an enormous, angry animal with huge horns whose name is something like "Switchblade" just to see if you can hang on by one hand for 8 seconds.

Just sitting here typing this 8 seconds doesn't seem like very long at all. But if I were on the back of "Switchblade" while he bucked and thrashed and jumped and twisted I'm pretty sure 2 seconds would seem like FOREVER!

Yea, and I am pretty sure you can tell where I am going with this one...

Isn't it obvious?

I know I am not the only one who has had times in my life where I felt like I was holding on by one hand to my hope, my dreams, my sanity, while what seemed like an enormous problem was doing its best to "throw me off."

And it seems like when you are in the middle of a trial there may be times when it seems it will never end, even though in reality, when in comparison with the rest of your life, that trial that is consuming you at the moment doesn't really have that much meaning, doesn't take up that much of your time.

Yet, there you are, holding on for dear life.

And sometimes, you get thrown off into the dirt of life, and that problem threatens to stomp you into powder.

That happens to the best of us.

When it happens to you, the key is to GET UP! Don't just lay there! You are guaranteeing that whatever is trying to beat you will succeed.

What happens when you are too wounded to get up on your own?

You surround yourself always with people who will cover you in times like that, cover you in prayer, fight the bull of a problem for you, until you are in safety once again.

I want to encourage you today to HOLD ON! It may seem like this ride is going to last forever, but if you can ENDURE to the end, you will get something much better than a championship buckle.

You will get a crown of gold....

To lay at His feet.

HOLD ON!! What seems like forever may only last 8 seconds....