Before Giving Up…

Are you ready to quit?

A young single mother felt that way.

Her life hadn’t worked out.

Raising a child without a job took its toll.

She sat in coffee shops, scratching in a notebook.

She wanted to become a writer.

But publishers didn’t see it that way.

Rejection letter after rejection letter.

Words came.

Hope faded.

Her welfare checks would stop soon.

Maybe it was time to let the dream die.

Then came a fanciful story of wizards in training.

And with imagination and grit,

J. K. Rowling gave birth to a phenomenon in Harry Potter.

I get it—why people want to hang it up.

Can’t remember the beginning.

Can’t remember the end.

Like a ship that’s lost sight of the shore

and sees nothing but water,

life in the doldrums wears down a soul.

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatians:

“And let us not grow weary of doing good,

for in due season we will reap,

if we do not give up.

So then, as we have opportunity,

let us do good to everyone,

and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

(Galatians 6:9–10, ESV)

Grow weary…

Sweat rolls down its cheeks.

Aching muscles scream.

It looks at a 100-acre field—

and realizes only two rows have been plowed.

Too big.

Too much.

Heart shrinks.

And I am too small.

The job overwhelms.

Weariness grows when we labor

and see no sign of progress.

It’s the student who puts in everything—

and still gets an average grade.

Weariness has many fathers.

Comparison with others who are better.

In high school, the teacher paired me with a math whiz.

He did calculations in his head

while I sweated over a slide rule.

When you can’t see progress,

weariness grows.

How many on diets fall off the wagon

because the scale needle never moves?

Weariness whispers a single word: QUIT.

Why be moral in an immoral world?

I can’t make a difference.

What’s the point of being the lone voice

in a sea of insanity?

Paul reminded us—

life brings seasons.

Seasons of plenty.

And seasons of lean.

Are you weary?

You can take the strain off your life.

Stop.

Look at the path behind you.

Most people don’t know how much progress they’ve made.

At the end of the day,

make a “went right” list.

Go back and revisit your past.

Why did you start?

When Christianity gets hard,

go back to a step in a baptistry.

Revisit the feeling.

Remember the words.

Rekindle the fire.

Look forward.

At the end of my road, what will remain?

Kids who love others and serve God.

People who knew care because you gave it.

Start again—with someone beside you.

No matter what society says,

life is never lived alone.

Elijah had an Elisha.

Paul had a Timothy.

Remember the season.

The summers of life are hard—

but endurable.

In the heat of August,

October will come.

Just keep doing what is right.

Just keep it up…

and in due season—

you will reap.