Press On and On and On. . .

Did you know that the original Chicken Soup for the Soul book was rejected 144 times before a publisher deemed it worth the risk to take on? Today, there are nearly 200 different Chicken Soup for the Soul titles translated in over 40 languages totaling in sales of more than 112 million books. As a writer, this is encouraging to me because I have faced my fair share of rejection. This account that I heard just this week reminds me what I need to do to go beyond rejection and to reach success. What's that? Persevere!

I don't know about you, but I give up on myself far too easily and far too often. I try something, and when things don't work the way I planned, I try again. But after the fourth or fifth attempt, I label myself a failure and move onto the next task, always wondering what could have been accomplished if I had stuck with it.

Do you remember the passage in the Bible that says, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you? If you look at the root of the words in the Greek and Hebrew forms, you'll discover that this passage is not commanding us to ask, seek, or knock one time. The words actually bear the meaning of "ask and keep on asking," "seek and keep on seeking," "knock and keep on knocking." It's like the acrostic PUSH: Pray Until Something Happens. Don't give up when things don't seem to be working. Just keep trying!

What if Noah hadn't persevered through the ridicule of the people? What if Daniel hadn't persevered despite the threat to his life? What if Jesus hadn't persevered up the road to Calvary? Whether it takes one rejection or a thousand, we mustn't give up.

Whatever you're facing today, you can find the strength to keep going. You may have to walk or even crawl, but keep pressing on. Who knows what the end result may be?