Don’t Give Up

Hey You. This is a simple, short and unplanned post but I know someone needs this. If that someone is you, this is a reminder – some encouragement to keep going. Don’t give up.

Are you here?
You may be tired, exhausted and questioning the purpose of your life. It feels easier right now to just let go. Your palms are gritted from holding on to the prickly bar called life and you are sick and tired of holding on. Maybe you just don’t get it …. and you feel you would be better off escaping this earth. You are fully aware that God is all-mighty, all-powerful and perfect but somehow your circumstances have you feeling like you are a mistake. You may have gotten to the point that you are ready to forfeit the promise if it means you get to leave the holding cell you are in right now. I see you… but much more than that, God sees you.

I just want to encourage you today by inviting you to a perspective shift. My prayer is that this simple encouragement could perhaps fuel your endurance. A change in perspective could be more transformative than we can fathom. Perspective is what caused Jesus to submit to such an unfathomable season of suffering, persecution and eventual execution. Simply put colloquially, perspective is ‘everything‘.

I had a defining moment a few years ago when I thought about the fact that it requires more effort for God to give me my next breath than to just let me go. Pretty obvious I know… but we don’t often think about this. When this thought actually took root in my heart, it became a weapon for me. Did you know that on average, we take 12-15 breaths per minute? And yet, instead of letting you go, God chooses to invest His effort into sustaining you by the second, by the minute, by the hour… every day. Think about this…. that’s about 17,280 – 21,600 breaths EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. He’s been so intentional keeping your pulse – your heart is still beating, your lungs still respiring, your blood still circulating…..These are the ‘little’ miracles that many only tend to recognize are ‘big’ when they become absent.

You and I must have heard of people that passed on out of the blues… whether that was from a sudden slump or it was a case where someone just didn’t wake up…. These moments make us realize just how precious breath is…. even on the days that we don’t value ours. The Lord took this precious asset(breath) and invested it in places(people) He saw could bring a great return. You, my friend, are an investment. He’s so confident in your potential to bring a high return of glory that He continues to pour into you. You are so so so valuable. Not because of anything you can do, but who you ARE. After all, it is who you ARE informs what you can DO.

“You, my friend, are an investment. He’s so confident in your potential to bring a high return of glory that He continues to pour into you. You are so so so valuable. Not because of anything you can do, but who you ARE. After all, it is who you ARE informs what you can DO.”

Beloved, there is so much beauty and glory on the other side of this trial and pain but you can’t afford to jump off the bus till you get to your final destination. If you have surrendered and submitted to God, if you love God and are called according to His purpose, He promises to work ALL things for your good. Yes ALL things. This means that not a single tear that falls to the ground will be disconnected from a fruit or flower that will blossom.

Here’s something that was impressed on my heart this week;

Faithfulness has a reward.

Don’t give up my friend, I desire for you to see the Master artist do what He does best – Birth something overwhelmingly beautiful from the ugliest of ordeals. It is His specialty. Trust Him and don’t let go. I pray that you will see what He uses your tears to water in full bloom.

I encourage you to listen to the song below – I absolutely love it and more than that, it’s a needed reminder. Also, below are also a few scriptures to encourage you to hold on and hope again. Let’s emulate David by encouraging ourselves in the Lord (1 Sam 30:6) . You’ve got this because God’s got you. I love you but God loves you more 💕

“Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.”
-Psalms 126:3-4

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.  For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.  So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. “
–2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.“
-Heb 10:36

“So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”
-Gal 6:9

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