There are so many things that come up in life, and the more I pay attention to the things around me the more I see how easy people give up. Marriages broken apart because the parents just gave up and didn't fight for something so important. People lose their jobs and just give up, don't even try to find another one because it's too "stressful." People just give up on standing up for what's right because they feel nobody hears or cares what they're saying or doing. Parents give up on their kids, thinking they'll never get through to them some lessons they need for life. Christian family members giving up on their lost family members, just saying they won't ever get the truth through their head. Everywhere I look, people struggle a little bit, then give up and stop trying. Winston Churchill once said in a speech "Never give in--never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy."
It's a good thing to remember. We SHOULDN'T ever give in. We should strive to work as hard as we can for the things we believe in, for the promises we've made, we should work as hard as possible. So many things people try to do on their own. Whether it be keeping a marriage alive, keeping one's child from going down a wrong road, or bringing a loved one to Christ. If you want the honest truth, we cannot do a single one of these with our small human strength. Not a one. We will fail every time. The only way to keep these things full of hope is to rely on Christ to give us strength, patience, love, and forgiveness. God is all powerful, always forgives, loves beyond comprehension, and has more patience than we could even imagine. He gave everything He had, and still gives today to those who follow Him.
When things seem tough, never give in, never, never, never give in. No matter how hard things get, no matter how hurt we are, or stressed we get. Never give up... We need to rely on Christ and pray for wisdom in all situations that we would have patience.
Not all, but in many instances people give up on things because of another persons pride. The bile says so many things about pride and how much destruction in causes.
1. I will break down your stubborn pride. Leviticus 26:19
2. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ Obadiah 1:3
3. His pride led to his downfall. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God. 2 Chronicles 26:16
4. In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God. Psalm 10:4
5. For the sins of their mouths, for the words of their lips, let them be caught in their pride. Psalm 59:12
6. When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2
7. Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice. Proverbs 13:10
8. Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18
9. A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor. Proverbs 29:23
10. The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. Ecclesiastes 7:8
11. The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled and the pride of men brought low; the LORD alone will be exalted in that day. Isaiah 2:11
12. I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty and will humble the pride of the ruthless. Isaiah 13:11
13. Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. Isaiah 13:19
14. The LORD Almighty planned it, to bring low the pride of all glory and to humble all who are renowned on the earth. Isaiah 23:9
15. Arrogant and hardened with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. Daniel 5:20
16. “Do not go beyond what is written.” Then you will not take pride in one man over against another. 1 Corinthians 4:6
17. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load. Galatians 6:4
18. Your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God. Deuteronomy 8:14
19. Unleash the fury of your wrath, look at every proud man and bring him low. Job 40:11
20. Though the LORD is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the proud he knows from afar. Psalm 138:6
21. The LORD detests all the proud of heart. Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished. Proverbs 16:5
22. Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud. Proverbs 16:19
23. Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor. Proverbs 18:12
24. The LORD Almighty has a day in store for all the proud and lofty, for all that is exalted (and they will be humbled). Isaiah 2:12
25. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 1 Corinthians 13:4
We need to remember that in all of the things Satan throws at us, turn our pride off or we'll do so many things we'll regret...not to mention things that will sadden Christ. If it means glorifying God to let someone else do something instead of what we want, then we need to do it. If it means God will be glorified for us to give something up that WE want, then by all means do it. We should show others God's love, shine His light...not show them our own selfish wants or wishes.
I had a friend once who told me he couldn't believe Christians were real, because all they wanted was a number on their board of attendances, a big pile of money in their offering plate to build more "stuff", and to tell people to live one way, then go live their life the total opposite. It saddens me to hear anyone say that, but it is an opinion of many people out there in the world. They see us going and telling other people of all the wonderful things God does for us, and all about His love that we have inside of us. Yet they see churches split and argue over things like the color of the carpet, or the arrangement of the chairs. They are thinking we aren't any better than them, why would they want to learn about this "Jesus" we talk about and this fake love we speak so highly of. It's a sad thing to see in Christians lives...as well as my own. One thing that my mom has told me lately is that our only job is to shine Jesus, and if we haven't done that then no matter what, WE have done wrong. It was a job we failed at and we must take the punishment for it. I think if I tried harder to shine Jesus and worried less about what other people were thinking about what I was wearing, how I talk, how much I know or how I looked, then I would have such a huge impact on my community. Just to smile at people and treat them with the love of God, no matter what they do to me, how rude or grumpy they are, or what is said to me. Everything that comes out of me, every reaction, should be from God.
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