Never, ever give up!

Can I just be honest with you? I cannot tell you the number of times I just wanted to give up and quit . . . my marriage . . . parenthood . . . homeschooling . . . I just get so weary sometimes. It is very, very hard to see the end result of our efforts, but we'll surely NEVER see what could've been if we just up and quit. One verse that comes to my mind each time I'm tempted to quit is Galatians 6:9:

And let us not be weary in well doing:

for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.

This verse just screams out to me "Don't give up! The day is coming when you'll be rewarded for your hard work! Never, ever, ever give up! You've come too far! Hang on just a little longer! DON'T YOU QUIT ON GOD!"

The truth is, all things are in God's time. Romans 5:6 tells that that even Christ had to wait for God's timing:

For when we were yet without strength,

in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Mark 13:32 tells us that He is still waiting on God's timing:

But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no,

not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

It may take everything you and I have to walk the path and bear the cross that God has given us, but we cannot quit and expect to get anything out of it. What if the day you quit is the day your reward comes? what if the day you quit praying is the day that person you were praying for was supposed to get saved? what if . . . what if . . . what if . . .? We never know.

The above video is from the movie Facing the Giants. I didn't see it as the theater, but we did buy it on DVD. Can I just tell you that this clip is the most powerful scene in the entire movie? The attitudes of the players, especially the captain of the football team, are changed because of what the coach asks this young man to do.

One thing that stands out to me is the fact that he is blindfolded through the entire ordeal. He cannot see a thing. He does have a goal, but he does not know how far he is from it. All he knows is that he just has to keep on trying; he cannot quit, no matter how much it hurts, no matter how much it burns!

Can I just tell you that every time I watch this, I am utterly in tears. I imagine that I am the one doing the death crawl, and I cannot see the end of my endeavor. I have a God-given goal, but I have to trust Him to get me there. Right beside me is God cheering me on, screaming for me to give Him my very best. He is there telling me not to ever quit, letting me know I am almost there.

As the scene begins, the team is so down because the team they are up against on Friday night is the best around. The coach urges the captain of the team to give his very best for his team. If he gives up, then the rest of the team will too. By the end of the scene, the captain and all of the team realizes that they can do whatever is necessary to reach their goal. No matter how much it hurts and burns, they won't quit!

My life is very much like that. When mama is discouraged and wants to quit, so will the rest of the family. So mama has to rely on God, though God often asks for more than she thinks she can give. Then she realizes that her team . . . her family . . . needs her, and it will take God cheering her on to keep her from quitting and reaching the finish line. God never leaves her alone. God is always by her side. Mama can do anything with God's encouragement.

People, never, ever give up! Ever.

Love in Christ,

J.L.