No 21

(Determination)

One animal in nature that shows much determination is the wolverine.  Pound for pound it is the fiercest animal on earth.  This northerly predator is shrewd and highly active; the wolverine has two speeds – completely stopped or running as fast as it can.  It has been known to eat the bait on a trap and then hide the trap from the hunters.  Although it is very mobile, it is not a fast runner so it usually resorts to ambushing its prey.  It is not a very large animal; about the size of a large fox; it is a member of the weasel family.  Its eyesight is not that good either so it uses its other abilities to compensate.   With sheer determination, it has been known to defeat a grizzly bear that is many times its size.  By using the abilities it does have in single-minded concentration, the wolverine overcomes several handicaps. Packs of wolves that have captured a meal will leave it for fear of the wolverine.  Its habitat is Canada, northern US and northern Russia.

In the Bible, one person who shows much determination is Jacob.  After stealing his brother Esau’s birthright and blessing, he left his father Isaac to go to Laban to find a wife.  When he first saw Rachel, he said to her that he was part of the family; he was determined to have her as his wife. As it turned out, after having worked 7 years for Laban to obtain Rachel, he got Leah instead, the elder of the two.  Jacob did not like Laban’s decision and Laban said to him “Fulfil her week, and we will give thee this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.”(Gen 29:27).  Jacob got Rachel but he had to work another 7 years for Laban; he showed much determination.   When he was on the run from Esau, his brother, he encountered an angel with whom he fought till daylight and would not let him go till he blessed him.  It was at this encounter that his name changed to Israel, which means “he who has struggled with God.”  Jacob was a very determined person because God, in a dream, had made him a promise that “in thy seed shall all the families of the world be blessed  (Gen 28:14)  God has made all true believers a promise “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”  (Romans 10:13).  May we all have the determination of Jacob to spread this good news to all who need to hear it.