Being consistent is a major key to achieving what you want.You don’t necessarily have to be the best at something to achieve; you just need to be consistent. 

Those who try things for a while and then stop will usually fall short of achieving what they want. 

For instance, I’ve played the guitar for 37 years. You would think that someone who’s been playing the guitar that long has got to be pretty good. Well, I’m sad to say that I’m not a very good guitarist. 

As much as I complain that I have a disconnect between my brain and my fingers, the real problem is consistency.

I don’t see progress as fast as I would like so I get discouraged and put my guitar away for a while. When I finally get excited to play again, I’m not really building on my skill, but actually starting back at the basics that I mastered when I first learned.

I’m not progressing; I’m more like staying the same as I have been for many, many years. 

I don’t think I’d ever be a Jimi Hendrix or Eric Clapton on the guitar, but if I could get over my discouragement in my progress and just play and practice, I would definitely get better. 

Sure, some people pick things up quicker that others. Some may have more of an aptitude, which in turn produces faster progress that leads to greater satisfaction and more motivation to keep going. 

However, if people could just be consistent with something, in the long run they would see achievement. 

We came up to our cottage the other week; we hadn’t been up for a while. When we pulled into the driveway, the grass was green, lush and long – really long.

Our cottage is in a very sandy place. The name of the town is Sauble Beach, with “beach” being the operative word. Grass doesn’t just grow on its own very easily there. It takes work and, more that that, it takes water. 

Our grass had been failing for years and we wanted to turn it around. But, with only being at the cottage for very short stints, interrupted by weeks of being away, it was difficult to get any grass growing. So I installed a few underground sprinklers hooked up to a timer. No matter how infrequent we were at the cottage, the grass could still get watered.

The last couple of years though, I’ve been discouraged because, even with the sprinkler regularly scheduled to water the grass, the lawn kept getting worse. 

About two months ago I discovered that the timer was working, but not communicating to the sprinklers. The lawn wasn’t getting any water. 

So off to the hardware store I went. I got a new timer, threw some grass seed down and we left for home. 

A week and a half later, after consistent watering every night, we have a jungle. 

Consistency works. If you want to achieve something, just keep at it and don’t stop.

Here’s the thing: About 26 years ago I decided that I would read through the Bible during the year. I’ve done that every year since. It’s not a great feat; it only means reading about four chapters a day. But over those years, among other things, I got a better understanding of what God thinks of us and His plan for each one of us. Let me encourage you to consistently read God’s word and you will achieve a greater understanding of God’s role in your life and this world. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: What do you need to be more consistent at right now? Leave your comments and questions below.

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