Giving Up

When you fail. When you make mistakes. When things can’t get worse. When they get worse anyway. When you start to lose hope. When all you can see is your faults. When all others can see is your faults. When you can’t seem to move forward. When it seems you’ve tried everything. When all you feel is pain. When you can’t seem to find God. When who you are is shell of the one He made you to be.

 

There is a choice. There is always a choice.

 

It starts with repentance- doesn’t it always? Stop. Turn from your ways. “”Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first
works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from
its place-unless you repent.” Rev. 2:5

Then, forgiveness. Yes, Jesus forgives us! He wipes our slates clean. Today is a new day, yesterday is as far as the east is from the west. Do I chose to accept this forgiveness for myself, and for the people around me? “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us [our] sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9. “Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37

Now, Life. Hope. Love. Peace. There is nothing between us and our Savior. We need Him. He is our strength, every day. Our daily bread. When we spend time with Him; in Scripture, praying, praising, seeking, etc., it’s nourishment to our souls. “And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me
shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.” John 6:35. “Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Selah” Psalms 68:19

 

The choice: Giving up. Every choice we come to, we give something up. We can choose to give in to our flesh; hold onto things, take control, do what we want, worry, etc., and give up on what God has to offer us. Or, we can choose to surrender and trust God, and give up on ourselves and our ‘rights’. “When He had called the people to [Himself], with His disciples also, He
said to them, ‘Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself,
and take up his cross, and follow Me.
For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses
his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul.'” Matthew 16:24-26

 

I have felt myself at my breaking point quite a few times this year. Finally, I gave up. I praise God for that.

 

Sometimes it’s hard to let go, but God is faithful to help us when we’re seeking Him. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7