True Grit

Written by Jason Haines

“Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” -James 1:12 NIV

How many times have I over the years, in the past went out and just did or bought what I wanted and said to myself that I’ll catch up and pay for this later? Or my favorite is when we say to ourselves, we deserve this, or we need this now. I have done this myself many times and I am still trying to this day dig myself out of the things I didn’t need at the time. Thankfully I made a decision a while back that I wanted to change the way I lived my life and the things that I did. I did this not only for my family but for myself and to become a better man and leader. I just wanted to be better than the things I owned, or in my case kind of owned and had. I wanted to teach my kids how to be good people and that they didn’t need things to be happy. I thought this and I wasn’t which at the time I wasn’t developing any grit in my life and just getting the things I wanted.

There is a saying that people use that God will provide you with the things you need. Yes, this may come with work and some grit to say no to things that you do not need but the things you do need will come to you when you need them. I used to not think this because of the things that I did ask for that I thought I needed in my life I did not receive, and I thought God wasn’t listening to me. Yet he was and he knew what I needed and when I needed them. He also knew that he would provide me with those things when he thought I was ready for those things. I realize this more today and know that God will provide me with the things I need in good time. Whether it be in my business or in my family he will provide for me and my family when we need it. It may not be when I want it, but it will come in due time.

Maybe having grit is building patience and not living in what have you done for me lately world. Let me tell you something, patience, and my wife will tell you, is not one of my biggest attributes, but I am getting much better at it (kids will do that to you). I have developed better patience since coming to God and learning more about Jesus’ teachings that he will provide what I need when I need it for me and my family. Through this I have started to develop my grit and need to protect my family and keep them safe but also allow them the freedom to be able to make decisions on their own. As a father and husband, I have found that I need to provide more than an income for them to make them safe. I realize I need to teach them, guide them, and keep them safe against things that are not good for them. That is the job of a father and husband. To be hard when necessary and be able to be a mentor and teaching when I need to be. My goal as a father is to always be a good person, not always a nice person.

Developing my grit started long ago in the things that I suffered through and things that I was not given. With this I chose not to blame others for my plight but to look for the reasons I didn’t receive things and find a way to be better in the future. I look back on my life and realize that God had a plan for me and was preparing me for what I have now, along with my wife and kids. It was so we could teach our kids and prepare them as best as we can. Hoping we can teach them to be good people and provide better for their family and kids in the future.

I do not write these stories for anything other than to invite you to church with me and see the world from a different view these are extremely rough drafts and nothing more. Regardless of whether we are in the same area or not, I invite you to church to maybe see things in a different light.