Tenacity is evident throughout Mark’s message. It’s stacked with testimonies of desperate souls that wouldn't be denied a simple touch or a solid word from Jesus. Even though they were mocked or ridiculed or shushed by the crowds, like blind Bartimaeus, they knew their answer was not going to found in the noise and nonsense of the people, but only with Jesus. What do we find? We see each of them pushing through the laughs and loathing of the multitude to lay their hands personally on the Master.

Take the Gentile lady, who was told she was a dog... and although it was Jesus who called her a dog, it didn't stop her, slow her down or shut her up. Why? She had a NEED and it was greater than any pride or self pity that may have attempted to thwart her efforts to lay hold of Jesus. Glory... (Mark 7:24-30)

This applies for all of us. When our NEED IS GREATER than our pride... what others say about us won't distract, derail or damage us. For most of us we simply do not have a big enough need. When a need is big enough, it has a way of overshadowing things that would usually offend the average person. Big needs lead to big purposes... and a big purpose will swallow up little offensives. When our pride is greater than our purpose, every little thing will trip us up. But when our purpose exceeds our pride... little offensive stand in the shadow of a greater purpose.

When the NEED pushes pride aside... insults simply become invitations of affirmation, and not insults to injury. Think about it... if you continue to suffer injury over what others say... your pride is greater than your need. Bartimaeus nor the Gentile lady didn't need to be coddled, they both had a great need and they knew there was only one person who could help them.

Desperate people are usually unashamed to ask for something they need. They’re not threaten by what others think or say about them when they ask. Why? Their need is greater than the threat or their shame or what others think or what they may say in an attempt to derail, distract or damage them. They posses something, not all people have, an unashamed tenacity.