Never give up – something we cannot be reminded of too often! We must never give up on God’s promises, on His love, on His favor, etc.
Sometimes the enemy can appear to win or the situation may look a little extra bleak, but that is not the time to grow weary. Light always triumphs over darkness and good over evil! If God has promised you something, He will deliver!
Things seemed a bit bleak to me on the political front recently. Frustration came creeping in, but then a small voice reminded me of the persistent widow. Again, as many times in the past, I was inspired by her story. I hope it inspires you also and fills you with hope!
The Persistent Widow
One day Jesus told his disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.
“There was a judge in a certain city,” he said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people. A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’
The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people, but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’”
Then the Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge. Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to his chosen people who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will grant justice to them quickly! But when the Son of Man returns, how many will he find on the earth who have faith?”
Always Pray and Never Give Up
Pray without ceasing springs to mind here. Never underestimate the power of prayer. I know that at times it feels like situations are far and beyond our control, but God has given us an incredibly powerful tool in prayer and it is up to us to tap into it!
It is easy to remain positive when things look bright, but what about when the storm clouds of uncertainty roll in? I can’t help but think in the Bible how it says, “what credit is it to you when you are nice to those who are nice to you? for even the unbelievers are capable of that…” To me that question could be so appropriately asked here, “what credit is it to you when you remain faithful and don’t give up when things look to be going in your favor? Anyone can do that…”
But it is true resilience, true confidence in God to remain faithful in prayer and not give up when things look bleak. As long as we have God, our hope is not in vain! He equips us well for every circumstance He brings us through if we will but focus on Him!
Faith
I was inspired by a new dimension of faith – faith is nothing without hope. People might urge you not to get your hopes up, but you must realize that without hope your faith is meaningless! Hope inspires your faith! Hope says you have these promises, now believe they will come to pass – and that’s faith!
You have to actively and persistently choose faith though. Fear will rush in at any opportunity, but you must push it aside and choose faith, choose confidence in God’s ultimate plan.
Some days I find myself struggling between two decisions, trying to decide which to do. Do I say something and risk being wrong, or do I remain quiet and save face? This simple question quickly helps me decide. If my one concern with saying something is possibly being wrong (and not hurting or harming another person), then to me that is fear trying to keep me quiet and safe. So instead, I try to speak out boldly and bravely. And let me tell you, this does not come easily to me! But it isn’t about what’s easy, but rather about learning to speak in faith!
Pressing On!
May each of us delve into new levels of confidence and faith in God, in the good times and in the bad. For it is the hard times that test us and show us what we are really made of. And I want to be remarkable for God in every circumstance – and I believe you do too!
Until Next Time!
Hope.
PS. Of this I am certain, God is in control and thus, the best is yet to come! https://www.theamericanlady.com/2018/04/04/get-your-hopes-up/