Embrace the Grind

 Most people want to be successful. People like to win. Many of those same people do not embrace the grind of what it takes to succeed. Business people find short cuts, compromise convictions, and use people to climb to the top. Some sleep their way to the top trading sexual favors for promotions. Athletes don't always practice hard, but think they can just play hard during games and succeed. They don't understand the grind of working out to improve performance. 

The grind is the day to day mundane things you have to do in order improve. Swimmers have to swim. Sales people have to find new customers. Students have to study. Authors have to keep typing one word, one sentence, one paragraph, and one chapter at a time. Most of those things are not pleasant. It the grind of another shift at work. It is another early morning workout to improve your health when you preferred to stay in bed. It saying no to a short term pleasurable purchase in order to save for a better purchase down the road. It is the grind of cranking out another assignment toward earning that degree. It is the devotional disciplines you do in order to have a vital walk with God. 

The grind is often hard. It is tediously boring at times. The grind is gritting your way through hard stuff in order to arrive at a more preferrable future. Many people say they want to be close to God. Many say they want to know God. That takes time through the grind of things you hear in church all the time. Bible reading. Bible study. Prayer. Scripture meditation. Nobody sees when I get up to pray or read my Bible. Nobody sees when I enter the secret place to intercede. Nobody notices the journal entries I jot down. It is all part of the grind of trying to get to know God. 

When you learn to embrace the grind, you don't mind it so much. I embrace the grind of riding a Peloton. I don't have people in the room cheering me on. Nor do I have a coach. It is the bike, me, and the competitors I ride against at the time listed on the screen. I only see their progress and where each of us ranks during that ride. It is a grind to pedal. To bead up in sweat leaving puddles beneath the handlebars. It is a grind to endure a soar bottom from the seat. It is a grind, but I know it helps my health. That is why I embrace it. I know the benefits. If we could focus on the benefits of the grind more than the effort, boredom, or dislike of the process, it could be more tolerable. Maybe even enjoyed as well as embraced. 

I don't know what your grind is. One of mine is writing these articles. This will make number 1,665 over the past several years. I rarely get feedback if these help anyone. I refuse to let advertisements on here to profit financially. I write because that is what God called me to do. There are days when the inspiration flows freely. There are seasons where I hit writer's block and can't find inspiration anywhere. In those days, I still try to grind. I set a goal of the number of posts I wanted to write in 2026 back in early January. It is now October 2nd. The newness of the year has long ago worn off. It is a grind to stay focused on the goal. During the late spring and summer that goal seemed far out of reach. I renewed the grind and just keep writing. If I embrace the grind, I just might surpass that goal after all. I hope you will embrace your grind as well.