Ever get tired and want to quit?
I certainly have. And, there are certain times in life when we should
quit. When we discern what we are doing is not in accordance with God’s plan,
we should quit. If we are headed in the wrong direction, we should quit
traveling that way. When our “passion has dried up,” as Hans Finzel puts it,
“it’s time to go.”
Just
tired while doing well? This is not a reason to quit. “And let us not be weary
in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not” (Gal. 6:9
KJV).
In 1945, Branch Rickey
signed Jackie Robinson to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers and be the pioneer to
finally break the integration barrier in baseball. Subjected to threats, taunts
and humiliation, Jackie could have turned back, but few would have remembered
him. For Jackie Robinson and for us, the margin between success and failure is
often measured by our perseverance.
These are truly days
that try our souls. When I talk to religious leaders, they stress the
increasing opportunities where others might serve compared with the limited
financial resources at their disposal. Believers continue to be committed to
supporting local churches and other worthy ministries, yet the impact of the
national economy, including high unemployment and low investment returns, is
being felt by Christ-centered organizations.
Few are the religious
organizations that have not cut staff, reduced benefits, and eliminated
programs. These are challenging days with no short-term relief in sight.
Yes, there is a danger
of becoming weary in doing well.
John Piper observes,
“Almost every one of you can think of something you were enthusiastic about
recently, but now the joy has faded. Your first day of vacation on the coast,
the sunset was breathtaking and made you so happy you could sing. But by the
end of your stay, you hardly noticed it anymore. Vacationers get tired of
sunsets, millionaires get tired of money, kids gets tired of toys, and
Christians get tired of doing good.”
But this is no time to
even consider losing heart. The Apostle Paul is saying there will be a payday
someday. And the charge to keep on keeping on is motivated by the prospect of
future reward. As John Wesley put it:
“Do all the good you can, in all the ways you can, to all the people you
can, as long as ever you can.” In short, don’t lose heart in spending yourself
in love.
The prophet Isaiah said
it well: “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they
shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they
shall walk, and not faint” (Isa. 40:31).
Paul recognizes the
direct correlation between persistence and motivation as he urges his readers
not to “grow weary” or “lose heart.” John Stott observes that “active Christian
service is tiring, exacting work.” So the apostle gives us this incentive: He
tells us that doing good is like sowing seed. If we persevere in sowing, then
“in due season we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.” If the farmer tires of
sowing and leaves half his field unsown, he will reap only half a crop. It is
the same with good deeds. If we want a harvest, then we must finish the sowing
and be patient, like the farmer who “waits for the precious fruit of the earth,
being patient over it …” (James 5:7).
When will we reap? The
harvest will occur in due time, at the appointed season, the proper season, the
due season, the proper time in God’s time. The fruit is reaped in the season
that follows the sowing, but it is ultimately the time of God’s appointment.
The good news? The law
of sowing and reaping will never be repealed.
As Hitler was mounting
his attack against England during World War II, Winston Churchill was asked to
speak to a group of discouraged Londoners. He uttered an eight-word
encouragement: “Never give up! Never, never, never give up!”
When it comes to someone
who never gave up, the Apostle Paul is our hero. In Acts 20, he said nothing moves me. I’m going to
keep doing what I’m doing and get it all done and finish the work Jesus gave
me. And nothing stopped him.
In 2 Corinthians 4, Paul
says, “Therefore seeing we have this ministry as we have received mercy, we
faint not.” Never get tired, he says. “We are troubled on every side, yet not
distressed. We are perplexed, but not in despair. Persecuted but not forsaken.
Cast down, but not destroyed.” Yes, Paul, is our hero when it comes to doing
well in spite of fatigue.
There will be times when we will
become discouraged in our Christian service, but we must never, never, never
quit doing good.
