By Pastor Jomo Cousins, PhD
Jonah 1:12 (AMP):
12 Jonah said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, for I know that it is because of me that this great storm has come upon you.”
In the story about Jonah, we see that having the wrong person in our company could cause everybody to go down with the ship. We must be careful whom we fellowship with and which fellows we allow in our ships. People are much like elevators—they will take you up and take you down. We must learn to identify who can be helped and who will likely stay just as they are.
I have learned that people do not change much. By nature, I am long suffering, and I will try to save people and help them to be what I think they should be. Sadly, I had to learn, over time, that we cannot motivate the unmotivated. We often want more for people than they want for themselves. It may be well-intentioned to try to call someone higher, but I have come to realize that if doing so starts to make me lose my composure, it is time to let them go. I much prefer to lead someone that I have to pull back rather than push forward.
Understand that not everyone is going to make it to the finish line with us. Some people in life are scaffolding—they are just there to help get the walls up.
Prayer:
Lord, help me to identify those in my life I need to hold on to and those I need to release. Lord, give me wisdom in my partnerships and my associations so that I can make good decisions, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Except from: 60 Prayers in 60 Seconds, page 23.
