RELENTLESS

After graduation from the academy, my first station was at troop headquarters. I was feeling pretty good about surviving the grind of the academy and was glad to be leaving some instructors who were relentless in their attempt to whip me into shape. I did know, however, that they wanted me to be all that I could on the job. I thought that now I would be considered "one of them," a brother in a unique group, so my new assignment would be relatively easy. Entering the sergeant's office, expecting him to be cordial and glad to have a new officer on his roster, I stood before him in front of his desk. After what felt like many minutes, the sergeant looked up from his work, stared at me for several seconds, and snapped, "The next time you come to my office, knock before I give you permission to enter." Then looking at me more intensely, he said, "Did you use a Hershey bar to shine your leather gear?" In the days that followed, at the end of each shift, I turned in my reports for the day. Without fail when I returned for my next shift, several of my previously submitted reports were stuffed in my mailbox, and corrections the sergeant had made were underlined and circled in red. This went on for six months. This guy was relentless. One day I learned that he had been promoted to Lieutenant and was being transferred. To say that I was ecstatic would be an understatement. I could only imagine how this relentless man would be to his new subordinates. He probably went out and bought a new red pen.

One definition of relentless is, "never ending." As Christ-followers, there are times when we should remain constant about those things we learn in God's word. Our demeanor should be different, our language appropriate, our behavior caring, with kind words towards others. On the job, that is not always easy. When we consider what our Lord has done for us, even though we are unworthy, we should realize that we, too, must extend grace. The Lord will show us how to do that if we only ask Him.

"The message of the gospel speaks loudest when people can see Christ in us."

Jerry Kinard, author

1 Corinthians 15:58, Galatians 6:9, James 1:4