Don’t even THINK about giving up!

Here are some of the reasons we might give up on something: 1) We fear failure. Past hurts and mistakes haunt us, and we think it’s better not to try than to risk failing. We all have mistakes and regrets in our past we would rather forget, but we need to put them behind us and refuse to be held back by them, especially when it’s God who’s telling us it’s time to move forwards. Paul wrote, ‘Forgetting those things which are behind…[reach] forward to those things which are ahead’ (Philippians 3:13 NKJV). 2) We worry what people will say. ‘Fear of human opinion disables’ (Proverbs 29:25 MSG). One of the most important choices we’ll ever make is how we choose to respond to criticism. There’ll always be people who won’t like or understand us and what we do. But the only opinion that really matters is God’s. 3) We listen to the wrong voices. Satan is the Father of Lies, and he’ll do everything he can to discourage us. Paul said, ‘Demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God,…take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ’ (2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV). When a thought comes, examine it. If it’s from God, let it in; if it’s from Satan, ‘demolish’ it. 4) We lose focus. As believers, we should walk by faith, not by sight (see 2 Corinthians 5:7). That means making every decision based on what God says and not what we see with our natural eyes. 5) We lose touch with other believers. When the apostles got out of jail, they went back to ‘their own company’ (Acts 4:23 KJV). We need fellowship with other Christians to stay strong. One of the hardest parts of a project or a spiritual or emotional journey is often the moment just before a breakthrough. So many people give up when they’re actually on the verge of a lightbulb moment or amazing discovery; so keep going, and don’t even think of giving up!