Mark 10:1
And he arose from thence, and cometh into the coasts of Judaea by the farther side of Jordan: and the people resort unto him again; and, as he was wont, he taught them again.
One key to living a successful Christian life is not to be a one-and-done believer, but to be a believer who does what they are supposed to do again and again. The life of Jesus was marked by His choice to continually do right again. It says about Jesus, as he was won’t, he taught them again. Jesus did not just teach one time and was done, but He taught them again and again. He understood that you cannot be successful in life by doing something one time, but you must do it again and again until you see the fruit of what you are attempting to do.
The most successful Christians are those who continue to do what they are supposed to do, no matter how hard it may be to do it. You cannot let the day-in and day-out of doing the same thing cause you to stop doing what will lead to success. Nobody has ever found success by being a one-and-done person. Those who find success know they must do what success requires continually, and not only continually, but continue to do it when it loses its excitement.
The successful Christian is the one who reads the Scriptures daily, even when they don't feel like doing it. It is not the mornings that you feel like getting up and reading God’s Word that leads to a successful walk with Christ, but it is reading His Word on those mornings when you must do it by character. The successful soul winner is the one who goes soul winning when they don't feel like going soul winning. The successful prayer warrior is the one who continues to pray when it feels like their prayers are hitting the ceiling. The faithful believer is the one who goes to church week-in and week-out, even on those Sundays when they just want to stay home because they are tired. We could continue with these illustrations, but you can see that the key to the Christian walk is not accomplished by being a one-and-done believer, but by continuing to do right no matter how hard it is. Several things it takes to be this type of believer.
First, it takes choice to be this type of believer. You must choose daily to do the right thing. You choose to be a one-and-done believer, but you also choose to be a believer who continually does the right thing despite how hard it may be to do it.
Second, it takes character to be this type of believer. When the excitement of church is gone, the charactered believer continues to go to church. When the excitement of the new church you joined is no longer there is when the charactered believer chooses to stay no matter how hard it becomes. Every day will not be a mountaintop day, but it is the days when things are monotonous that determines the character of the believer.
Third, it takes a crucified flesh to be this type of believer. The flesh will tell you to quit when the preacher gets on your sins. The flesh will tell you to run to the world when the lure of money seems more enticing than the affliction of serving God. My friend, you will be a one-and-done believer, one who quits quickly if you don't crucify your flesh daily. The fruit of serving God does not come in the one-and-done acts, but in continually doing right for decades. You will never make an impact on lives or in this world by being a one-and-done believer.
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