ITS ALWAYS TOO SOON TO QUIT

I wouldn’t be surprised if you’ve felt like “throwing in the towel” at one time.

If you haven’t, I suggest that you check your pulse. Quickly.

And here’s a real shocker for you: the notion that “winners never quit” is a myth!  Everyone – even “winners”- have not only felt like it, but have quit at one time or another.

I’ve been a quitter.

I got discouraged and quit my first ministry assignment 38 years ago.

The experience was humbling.

It was also instructive – I learned valuable lessons that have served me for the rest of my life.

3 Lessons About Perseverance

1. Its always too soon to quit.

If you have not finished a commitment, its too soon to quit.

That’s the beauty of making commitments – honoring commitments keep you going when you feel you can’t.

2. Its when things seem worst that you must not quit.

35 years ago I didn’t know that hard times could help create great character.

Suffering, the Bible says, creates perseverance and perseverance creates character.

I wish I had known the following 35 years ago:

“When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When care is pressing you down a bit-
Rest if you must, but don’t you quit.

Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to a faint and faltering man;
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor’s cup;
And he learned too late when the night came down,
How close he was to the golden crown.

Success is failure turned inside out –
The silver tint in the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It might be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit –
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.”

3. The tide will turn.

The enemy of your soul wants you to quit on a good thing because its become a hard thing.

The devil wants you to think there is nothing more permanent than your temporary situation.

Know this: the tide will turn because the tide always turns.

Robert and Glenda Lennon’s Story

Robert Lennon staked his life and the life of his wife on that truth.

Glenda and Robert Lennon were four miles off the coast of Florida fishing, alone from their yacht. Glenda decided to take a swim and soon found the current had carried her too far out from the boat. Her husband, hearing her cries, without thinking dove in and swam to her, but then realized they were both being carried out. He was a champion swimmer, but not she.

They made a plan.

He would swim against the tide to keep the boat in view until the tide ceased and he could reach the boat. She should save her strength and just float with the tide and he would come and get her.

He Fought The Tide For Six Hours

Just as the boat was about to disappear on the horizon the tide turned and his strokes carried him to the boat exhausted. The sun had set. His searching was futile—he could not find his wife.

The next day on one last effort of search, a search party found his wife—twenty miles out and still alive.

Sometimes you feel like you are not making progress but you may be swimming against the tide. If Robert had not swum with all his might, the yacht would have gone out of sight, and he and his wife would have drowned.

Keep swimming or running or serving or whatever it is you have committed to.

Keep moving forward…one step at a time.

You will finish well.

APPLICATION: Help a fellow struggler. Leave a comment below about a time you were tempted to quit and what you learned. Thank you.

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I write to inspire people to be real, grow an authentic faith in Jesus, enjoy healthy relationships and discover their life purpose. If this material is helpful to you, please follow me.

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