Do not quit

Galatians 5:22-23 in the MSG, “But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.”

Our focus for today is the part that says, “[w]e develop a willingness to stick with things”. As we grow and mature in Christ, we develop tenacity, a no quit attitude. There is something about the Holy Spirit living on the inside of us that makes us tenacious. As children of God, we are fighters. God calls us victorious and more than conquerors,. For us to be victorious we have to fight to win something. Or for us to be more than conquerors we have to be conquering something. Winning battles or conquering things doesn’t usually happen overnight. It takes time.

For us to develop a willingness to stick with things, we need to be doing something. Question is, are you doing something worth sticking with? The most important thing we can do is to serve God in our generation. God planned for us to be in the world at this very time and at this very moment. Imagine all the chaos in the world right now and God thought we were the ones best equipped for it. There must be so much more on the inside of us than we are aware of.

Now is not the time to grow weary of faint or start backing down or withdrawing from God. Now is the time to dig our heels in and press forward. We are the light of the world. Amidst of the chaos around us, we are the ones who are carriers of peace and we are to release that peace. In the middle of confusion and the Covid pandemic and tragedy after tragedy, we are the ones to bring hope to the hopeless world and remind them we have a Savior.

Galatians 6:9 says, “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.” This applies in every single area of life. God is not a quitter. As we develop the fruit of the Spirit in us and we mature in Christ, we become more and more like God. As we grow in our faith and in our trust in God, we begin to realise that we are never alone God is with us and we are not fighting in our own strength. We didn’t save ourselves, I don’t know what makes us think we have to sustain ourselves. Our help comes from God. We don’t quit because greater is He who is in us than He who is in the world.

No matter what comes our way, we keep moving ahead with God. We know that it rains on the just and the unjust, Matthew 5:45, we have all been affected by the Covid pandemic in one way or another. Life happens to us all but hardship doesn’t mean we get to doubt God. We need to dig our heels in deeper and trust in the One who is good. God is good, all the time. Life may not be good all the time but it doesn’t make God any less good. So we do not give up on our faith in hardship, instead we ask God to strengthen us and reveal Himself to us in new ways. To give us a revelation for today. Give us this day, our daily bread, Matthew 6:11. We need to hear from God in the midst of it all so we can be strengthened to stand. So we can receive strength for the journey so we do not faint and so we do not quit.

Quitting is not an option. Keep moving ahead with God. Keep going after God. Do not give up. God’s strength will carry you through if you will lean on Him. Lean on God. We all have a breaking point but God does not. He is unbreakable. He is strong. So let Him be your strength.

Love and blessings,

Melissa Tsingano.