Never give up!

Never give up!  This phrase can make a catchy title for books or a good theme for inspirational songs.  It is easy to read these books and it feels good to sing these songs, but when everything seems to go against us and when what we are seeing, feeling and living in so different from what we are hoping,  the books and songs seem far away and giving up feels like a good option. We ask God for strenght, wisdom, patience and courage, how do we expect Him to give them to us? We don’t build determination when everything goes according to our plan, faith doesn’t grow stronger when we get what we want when we want it.  Do we want to be spoiled children or strong witnesses? 

We may look at people we admire in different fields and wish we could do what they are doing or have what they have, but very quickly we notice that this involves continuous hard work, daily training to excell and most of them have had to overcome difficulties that have made them stronger.  Our life is like a marathon and our training must prepare us for it. “Remember that in a race everyone runs, but only one person gets the prize.  You also must run in such a way that you will win.” (1 Corinthians 9:24) Things don’t just happen because we wish for them.  It is clear no athlete would go to a competition without training for it, the same way we can’t go into life unprepared.

Something amazing happens in the “never giving up” process so much more than we can imagine or expect, there is a transformation in us necessary for the place God is taking us.  We are constantly growing, we reach goals and keep going to the next level.  Each step is a little more challenging, but we couldn’t expect anything less than the best from God, so He purifies us, cleans us and demands more from us “These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure.  It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold – and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold.” (1 Peter 1:7) If we are too comfortable, then we are not growing and we are missing the opportunity to get closer to God and let Him do His will in our life.  

When we don’t get what we want or we have to endure hardships we think that God has forgotten about us or He is just ignoring our prayers, but we know that is not true because He said “I will never fail you.  I will never forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5)  The problem is that sometimes we think that if someone loves us, they will give us everything we want.  That is a common problem parents make, they think “I love my children, and giving them everything they ask for shows them my love.” But  children can’t get everything they want, that is obvious, so why is it so hard to accept when God, our Father, says to us “no, not now”?

“At times I might shut up the heavens so that no rain falls, or I might command locusts to devour your crops, or I might send plagues among you.  Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal their land.  I will listen to every prayer made in this place, for I have chosen this Temple and set it apart to be my home forever.  My eyes and my heart will always be here”.  (2 Chronicles 7:13-15) God wants a relationship with us; He wants the best for us, but we need to always remember that He is first. We need to seek God for who He is and not only for what He can give us.

The Bible is full of stories  that teach us to be persistent and encourages us to keep believing “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will be given what you ask for.  Keep on looking, and you will find.  Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened.” (Luke 11:9)

In Luke 18:1-6 we read a parable in which Jesus talks about a persistent widow who would not stop appealing for justice to a judge against someone who had harmed her.  “The judge ignore her for a while, but eventually she wore him out.  I fear neither God nor man, he said to himself, but this woman is driving me crazy.  I’m going to see that she gets justice.” (Luke 18:4-5)  I love the way Jesus made His point “Even he rendered a just decision in the end, so don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who plead with him day and night?” (Luke 18:7)

   

We need to pour our hearts out to  God, He loves to listen to us and He wants to comfort us when we are in distress, but He loves us too much to give us everything we ask Him for, sometimes we are asking for the wrong things or we may not be ready, or maybe He has something better for us.   So we need to keep asking, keep pleading “Pray to the Lord day and night for the fulfillment of his promises.  Take no rest, all you who pray.” (Isaiah 62:6) but always remember Who we are asking, remember humbly that compared to God’s plan, ours is very small;  We can be certain that He has already prepared wonderful things that will surpass our requests.