Wanting to Quit
Have you ever wanted to quit on something, but you didn’t? You pushed through and were rewarded when you did?
We were walking this week as a family on some trails. We’re past the peak of fall, and there’s not much color left. We’d been walking down this one path for a while and just not seeing anything worth seeing. Honestly, I was about ready to tell the kids to head back when all of a sudden, we turned a corner and this beautiful scene opened up before our eyes. It looked like something out of a fairy tale. We almost missed it. If we hadn’t kept going, we would have missed it completely.
One Thing’s For Sure
What do you have in your life right now that you want to give up on? What’s just not working? What are you ready to say enough to? You’ve tried and tried, and it’s just not working. You’re exhausted from trying so hard. You’re ready to be done. You feel overlooked, underappreciated, undervalued. Everybody else is making it work, but you just can’t! What are you so close to giving up on?
Here’s the next question: What will happen if you quit? One of my favorite quotes about not giving up comes from Steve Harvey.
“Everybody has a turn-back moment. You have a moment where you can go forward or you can give up. … [But] if you give up, the guarantee is it will never happen. … The only way the possibility remains that it can happen is if you never give up, no matter what.”
Steve Harvey
If you quit now, you can know for sure that you will never know what would have happened if you hung in there, if you waited it out.
So I’m coming alongside you today saying, “Don’t quit. Not yet. Hold on just a little bit longer. Keep at it just a little longer.” What might be on the other side if you just don’t quit?
Exercise to Try
Here’s a great exercise to try. Write down what could happen if you don’t quit.
Now write down what will for sure happen if you do decide to walk away? Now compare the two lists. Which one could you live with? Which one could change your life? Why?
The writer of the book of Hebrews understood a little something about wanting to give up, about growing weary and losing heart.
Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:3
The writer tells us to consider Jesus. Why? So that you won’t grow weary and lose heart. How does that work?
When we stop and consider or think about Jesus and all that he went through for us, it helps us to remember what’s really important.
Turning our Focus to Jesus
Why does that work? Why does focusing on Jesus help us to keep going? That’s because focusing on Jesus does four things for us.
Focusing on Jesus…
- Gets the focus off of ourselves.
- Makes our problems not seem as big.
- Reminds us what’s important and what’s at stake.
- Reminds us that Jesus knows and understands.
This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin.
Hebrews 4:15
So if you’re feeling tired today, if you feel like you just want to quit, like you can’t do this anymore…turn your focus to Jesus. Consider what he did for you. He gave everything for you, so that you could in turn live for him. Remember his amazing gift of love and let that challenge and encourage you to serve him today and not give up.
He knows what you’re going through, and he will get you through. Only God knows what’s on the other side if you don’t quit! But you’ll never know if you choose to give it all up.
More encouragement
For more encouragement, check out Matt’s book Breakthrough or check out my post It’s Too Soon to Quit.