THINKING ABOUT GIVING UP?

Statistics, etc. are being presented all the time now informing us of how many churches are folding up every day all across America. It’s alarming. Reports are also regularly posted as to the numbers of pastors who are leaving the ministry. And of course we have the data on the number of people who are giving up on their marriages. This is tragic. It seems like our culture has become, in great measure, one of giving up

But don’t you do it. God in His Word, commands and encourages us not to give up. Galatians 6:9 says: “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.” It’s faith in action that keeps people from giving up and hasGod's promise of reward.

So don’t give up on your marriage, your family, your ministry, your good and honorable dreams, or on your church or your country. Do everything possible to preserve and protect these things. Work and pray, and fight and pray. But don’t give up on these precious things. You’ll regret it throughout the rest of your life if you do. And the collateral damage to others because of your giving up may be immense.

If you must give up on something, resolve in your heart to give up on giving up. Quit even thinking about quitting. The following poem was a special blessing to me in the early days of my ministry. It is still taped to the inside cover of one of my old Bibles, and I have it in a little frame in my study. Let me share it with you.

DON’T QUIT—

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit-

Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.

Life is queer with its twists and turns,

As every one of us sometimes learns,

And many a fellow turns about

When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don’t give up though the pace seems slow –

You may succeed with another blow.