Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching (Hebrews 10:23-25 NIV).

You’d like to quit, wouldn’t you

And succumb to your fears

Throw yourself a pity party and invite your tears

You’d like to give up and make excuses

Why you can’t win

And contribute your failures with where you’ve been

You’d like to tell God, “I’m not quite right

And although you’ve helped me before,

I just don’t have the strength to fight.”

 

Times are hard and this world is rough

Instead of carrying heavy loads, you trying to lift trucks

You are burdened, you are drained

Frustrated in every way

You’ve reached the point where it’s even hard to pray

I feel you when you say, I’m tired

I face those times when I want to quit too

But God posed this question to me

That I will ask you….

 

“What if quitting was an option?

An Opportunity Present To Ignore Or Neglect God’s will for your life

So think about it, if quitting was an option right….

Ministers would change careers

After dealing with serious declines of character, teamwork

And faithfulness among their peers

Your assigned angels would have resigned

After having multiple slow workdays

And Jesus might have left the cross and took a loss

Because some people refuse to be saved

But let’s go back further….

 

If Quitting was an option,

Joseph would have ignored the angel of God and bailed on Mary

He would have left her to raise Jesus alone

Mary would have told God, “I have no strength to carry Jesus. This is just too big of a role for me to take on.”

 

Job would have cursed God and died

After being afflicted, tested and tried

And although Ruth loved her mother-n-law, Ruth would have left Naomi and missed the chance of new love, happiness and prosperity

Joseph, son of Jacob, would have had no charity or integrity. After being persecuted and oppressed,

He would have forsaken others, especially his family, and would have also been depressed

Noah, like many of us, would have procrastinated, half-obeyed or even failed to complete the ark

He would have let the people or even the size of the assignment discourage him so

And what if Moses never showed up for his meeting with Pharaoh?

And how about Jesus’ disciples?

They would have left Jesus standing

Because the job was too demanding

How about the Canaanite woman? She would have backed down

after Jesus didn’t answer the first time around

and her daughter would not receive healing

 

So if Quitting was an option

and God quit as well

Prisons wouldn’t be the only overcrowding place,

It would be Hell

But God is a god that cannot fail, nor lie

His righteousness is forever, His grace is sufficient

His mercies are daily

His word is bond and if He woke you up today,

God has not given up on you

You’ve already been reconciled

Already granted the opportunity to be saved

And set free, your price paid

How could we think of quitting,

When God is the God of victory

He is the author and the finisher of our faith

 

How could we quit

When God is working on our characters and our hearts

And always finishes what He starts

And how could you say you’re done?

Quitting on the Lord

Is like walking off the battleground

After your Team wins

Looking defeated

Not knowing you already WON!

—from Setting The Captive Free by Tannika Moore

 

So fellow sisters and brothers in Christ, do not give up; God has not given up on you.  Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up (Galatians 6:9 NIV). Persevere and trust God with the results of your obedience and your holding fast to your faith. Encourage one another and share God’s love and Word with others who may not know God’s unfailing, sincere love for all of mankind.  Jesus persevered all the way to the Cross so that everyone would have the opportunity to be saved eternally and reconciled back to the one true God.  Trust God and set the captive free!

Are you getting weary? Do you feel like throwing in the towel? What does God tell us about pressing in? What things do you do to get over feelings of despair, hopelessness and defeat?