Too many quit, or want to quit when the going gets rough. In most cases, one never really quits the problem, one just runs away from it. The dilemma is still there.
Quitters are everywhere:
- Husbands feel they cannot handle the burden of being a husband and father, and run away. Although there is distance between him and his family, he is still a father and husband. His running away has not changed that. The problems he ran away from usually get far bigger than they originally were.
- Wives run off leaving families and husbands; however, she is still a wife and mother.
- Children sometimes do not like their parent’s rules. They run away, but they still have the same parents. They just put space between themselves and the unsolved problem that will probably haunt them the rest of their lives unless they stay and work out the difficulty.
- Students quit school, but usually spend their lives without training and education. The rest of their lives is stalled, because they never learned the lessons they would need to further their lives.
- Friends quit a long-term friendship, because of an argument.
- Employees quit when they do not like what is happening at the workplace.
It usually is easy to walk away from an uncomfortable situation. It does takes not character, intelligence, or common sense to run away when the way gets tough. Rarely is anything solved by quitting. There will always be problems in life. Unsolved problems have a way of following us wherever we go.
Many take their quitting life-style and try to apply it to their spiritual lives. Here are several reasons why one cannot quit on God:
You cannot quit being a Christian. Once a true Christian, always a Christian. You did not earn it. It was a free gift of salvation given if you trusted Jesus’ finished work on the cross as payment for all your sins. However, too many quit being Christ-like.
“And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” John 10:28-29
You cannot quit because the enemy has nothing to offer. There are only two sides – Satan’s and God’s. If are truly saved by faith, you cannot get unsaved, and be on the loser’s side. “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:13
You cannot quit because victory may be just around the corner. Troubles and tribulations are part of the school of life. You may be very close to passing the “test” and going onto life’s next lesson. Do not quit now.
“And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.” II Timothy 4:18
You cannot quit when you make a mistake. Just get back in the saddle, and try again.
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39
You cannot quit now, you may miss the harvest. Maybe one day your problem will be over, and you will reap a blessing from the tribulation. Maybe it will be tomorrow or the day after. Spiritual fruit does not always come the day it is planted.
“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” I Corinthians 15:58 Also: John 15:4.
Many times life is very difficult. Your problems may seem overwhelming. If you are a Christian, you are on the winning side. Do not quit now. Victory is possible; it is a blessing when it is achieved, and it may be just around your corner!
interesting about slothfulness
It often amazes me how little people are willing to do in order to help themselves. If it involves input from themselves, they will not participate on any significant level.
I supervise apprentices to the trade I work in. I have seen it proven over and over that men who need to progress for pay or other reasons in the trade absolutely will not put forth any appreciable effort to pass the test that admits them to the trade. They will show up at work every day, but will not spend a few minutes a day for a couple of months getting prepared to take and pass a test. No will power to get over one hump, one time and be done. Similarly, I think people aren’t deeply rooted in a lot of things. Their marriages dissolve because they are not willing to do the hard work it takes to stay married. Their children are a mess because they will not do the work it takes to train and equip them. They quit church because they never had much of a commitment to Jesus anyway and the work of sanctification is too much. As long as they can be spoon fed, they are fine.
It brings to mind the Proverb: 19:24
A slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.
I think that spirit of quitting is a slothful spirit. It is easier to give up than continue.
The sad thing is that quitting is also deceptive. It has been hard work to be and stay married, but being single would have it’s own set of problems. Like Bro Brinkworth said…If a man quits his marriage.. he still has a wife, now he has a new set of problems that are not any easier than the problems he had with the wife. You don’t get out of anything by quitting. Quitting God might get you your Sundays and Wednesdays back, might get you 10% more money for a few paychecks, BUT…. It will also leave you without a provider, a comforter, without a healer, without a protector, leaving you wide open to whatever the enemy has for you.
Along those lines, I often interview people for a job. Many will launch into an explanation of why they are leaving their present job. (And if they will not, I often ask what they didn’t like about working at their last position) I often find they are fleeing what they see as intractable problems. I have asked the question many times….”Why do you think it will be different here?” The common denominator is usually that person and their personal agenda.
Thanks Bro Brinkworth…Great devotion today
Excellent testimony…..
Slothfulness may be the source of quitting I’ll have to ponder that…….
Powerful statement David! Totally agree! It’s always easier to quit than to put in the effort to make it work!
Growing up, I was bullied a lot! Therefore I had a hard time seeing my self worth. Because of this, I struggled throughout my life facing challenges! It was easy for me just to quit things or run from them!
Before I went into the ministry, I turned down several churches because I felt I couldn’t do it. I would come up with all kind of excuses: “I’m young”, “What if I’m not as good as the last pastor?” “Will they like me?” “Will I fail at this?”
Finally, my wife convinced me that if God called you, then He’s going to equip me! God blessed me at my first church for 5 yrs! Most pastors don’t stay at their first church longer than 18 months!
I still struggle some today, but when faced with challenges, I try to remember my position in Christ! “If God be for us, who can be against us?” “We are MORE than conquerors through him that loved us”
You read my mail Bro. Bill cause I surely needed that!
All, especially preachers, need encouragement.
Praise the Lord for good encouraging, godly wives. They’re often a “holy spirit” (don’t take that wrong) in our lives that point us in God’s direction and help us see things that we can’t see. They complete a man, and likewise a good husband should “complete” a wife (two halves equal a whole).
Amen to that!