Constancy...Don't lose what we have worked for!

What have you been constantly working for that you don’t want your followers to lose sight of? What are they picking up from you that comes across as most important in life?

We need and long for stability/constancy in our lives. Many times, it’s proven that a healthy family, church, team, and or business can point to stability/constancy within leadership as the reason for longevity and success.  The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines constancy as “steadfastness of mind under duress…a state of being constant or unchanging.”

When reading Second John Chapter 1, we can’t help but notice that believers were under the duress of false teaching. In verse 8, John warns all believers to “Watch yourselves so you don’t lose what we have worked for, but that you may receive a full reward.” (HCSB). See, there’s stability/constancy in that which one has worked and stood for over time.

With that said, I think it’d be good for each of us to consider the following questions…What are we working for that we should desire that those following us not lose? Is it the passing down of athletic knowledge and talents? Is it the passing down of musical talents? Is it the passing down of a family business or farm? Is it finances? Is it social status? Is it personal convictions? Or is it family / man-made traditions? Those are all good things, but what’s most important according to this passage? In Second John Chapter 1, John is referring to the constancy of walking obediently, and remaining in the truths of God and His word in spite of all the false teachings surrounding them. John is also referring to the constancy of walking in love for one another.

May we be reminded that genuinely walking in truth and love clearly separates us from those who find constancy in false teachings. Is that the same message your followers are learning from you…or are they sensing that something or someone else is most important to you in life?

May the following passages be additionally helpful to think on in relation to constancy…

1 Corinthians 15:57-58 (NKJV) But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.

Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV) 24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

Songs:
Constant by CedarCreek Worship
The Constant by Worship Central
Constant One by Bethel Music