The Power of Consistency

We have all heard the sayings:
“Slow and steady wins the race.”
“Keep on keeping on.”
“Trust the process.”
“Progress over perfection.”

All of these sayings have the same sentiment: stay consistent.

I often tell myself, “progress, not perfection.” In reality, however, I still find myself wanting perfection and instant results. I struggle with the middle of the process, which is where it often feels easiest to give up. Yet, I have learned that giving up only means starting over again later. The key is to simply keep going: even if that means moving slowly. 

This is where consistency comes in. There is a quote by Aristotle that says, "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."

Habits take time to form. Excellence is not birthed from waking up one day and deciding you are going to do something. Excellence is birthed from obedience, small steps each moment, each day that lead to the result you are seeking.

Go ahead and prepare yourself to stumble at times. We will never do any of it perfectly, because we will never be perfect and the Lord knows that.

As Christians, we are called to do everything with the spirit of excellence (not perfection). We are called to be obedient (not perfect). We are called to be faithful and steadfast (not perfect).

Philippians 3:12 says, "Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own."

We are not striving to obtain perfection, we are pressing on because we belong to Jesus and we rest in that.

Colossians 3:23-24 says, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.”

When our hearts are aligned with His, then everything we do is for His glory. 

The word “steadfast” has been standing out to me lately in my tent time. 

Steadfast is defined as: resolutely or dutifully firm and unwavering.

Firm and unwavering are two qualities that I desire to have, but as humans, we will inevitably fall short at times. But our God is always firm and unwavering, never changing.

Steadfast is used to describe God at least 200 times within scripture. 
Here are a few:

Lamentations 3:22-23: "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness."

Psalm 136:1: "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever."

Exodus 34:6: "...The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness."

Psalm 89:2: "For I said, 'Steadfast love will be built up forever; in the heavens you will establish your faithfulness.'"

Isaiah 54:10: "For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you.”

Not only do we serve a steadfast God, whose love is immovable, never changing, never ceasing, but He calls us to be steadfast as well.

1 Corinthians 15:58: "Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain"

I don’t know about you, but I want to be a steadfast person. I want to be a person of integrity who is reliable, who lifts others up and encourages. I want to be steady in my faith so I can be steady in all other areas of my life.

How can we do this? Consistency. Taking the small steps each day that lead to success, that lead to the goal.
 
This could be in every single area in your life. If you desire to go deeper with the Lord (which should be the case for us all) then you start spending more intentional time in prayer and the Word each day even if that is just 5 extra minutes at first, the Lord sees your faithfulness. If you have a physical goal and you want to eat healthier or exercise more, start with a very small achievable goal each day and once that has been established, you can add more and so on.

Are you wanting to read more? Are you wanting to spend more time with family and friends? Whatever it is, take the time to pray through it and decide on the steps you can take and simply move forward.

The sayings may be cliche, but it truly does start with just one step at a time.