Fifteen Seconds Rule

Yesterday I spent a very enjoyable couple of hours listening to someone I hold dear about his fears and discussing how to handle them.  As part of that conversation I brought up the "Fifteen Seconds Rule".  Someone may have taught this to me as the Five Seconds Rule or the Ten Seconds Rule.  I did a quick web search and could not find it, so I will say, for now, that the thought came to my mind to ask , "Have you heard of the Fifteen Seconds Rule?"

In the book of Genesis, there are stories of many great prophets.  Though he is not generally referred to as a prophet, Joseph is one of my favorite.  Joseph had many difficult trials, but he seemed to never question whose side he was on.  He always choose the Lord, the god of his father Jacob.  The Fifteen Seconds Rule comes from my impressions of the story in Genesis 39:7-20.  Verse 9 is the first time Joseph used the Fifteen Seconds Rule with a challenge to his faith in God.  He was firm and resolute, yet kind.  The second time when reason did not work with Potiphar’s wife, he had to take more assertive action.  When she caught hold of him, there was no flirting.   There was no rationalizing, he simply fled.  He "got him out" of that place.  From the private halls of Potiphar's residence to the outer walls, it probably took Joseph less than fifteen seconds of determined, unwavering action.

When I am stuck in a "rut" with a habit or life style that has turned uninteresting, unproductive and hard to change, I have found that it does not take days or even hours, it just takes fifteen seconds of focused action to change direction or to start a new path. After fifteen seconds of single-minded, fully committed action (faith in God), the inertia holding me back is gone.  I am moving forward having faith.  Success or failure in the eyes of the world, I am confident I am doing something of worth.  For fifteen seconds of effort, I receive the first reward of true faith, the assurance that God find's my path acceptable in His eyes.