It's OK to Feel Like Quitting

Life is hard. And some days, it’s all we can do to lift our heads from the pillow and face another day.

Loneliness that throbs like an aching toothache steals our sleep and shadows our days. Grief for a loved one snatched away stalks every happy gathering and quiet moment. Sickness and pain torment our bodies and threaten our lives. The loss of a job, a relationship, or a dream steals our hope.

Sometimes the desire to quit is fleeting, and we shake it off and move on. Other times it backs a 50-foot moving van up to our front door and takes up residence.

It’s OK to feel like quitting. You’re in good company if you do.

Moses did. Drafted into service to lead a recalcitrant army of wimps and whiners, he was so sick of the Israelites’ complaining that he asked God to kill him to put him out of his misery.

 “Where can I get meat for all these people? They keep wailing to me, ‘Give us meat to eat!’ I cannot carry all these people by myself; the burden is too heavy for me. If this is how you intend to treat me, just go ahead and kill me. Do me a favor and spare me this misery!” (Numbers 11:13-15).

Elijah also wanted to quit. Exhausted, alone, and running from wicked Queen Jezebel, he came to a broom bush, sat down under it, and prayed that he might die.

“I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors” (1 Kings 19:1-4).

And then there was Job. Poor Job, just trying to live righteously and be a good father to his kids. Devastated by the loss of his fortune, his health, and every single one of his children, he cursed the day he was born and wondered why he hadn’t died in his mother’s womb.

"Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb?” (Job 3:11).

If you quit, you’ll also be in good company.

There was a scientist researching a cure for cancer, but he quit.

There was a diplomat developing a peace plan for the Middle East, but he quit.

There was a teacher, beating back the darkness in the public school system, but she quit.

There was a missionary sharing the gospel in the 10/40 window, but she quit.

There was a youth worker challenging teens to follow Christ, but he quit.

There was a police officer trying to uphold the law, but he quit.

There was a husband, struggling to stay committed in a difficult marriage, but he quit.

And there was a mother, caring for her young children with few resources, but she quit.

But if you don’t quit, you’ll be in better company.

Moses, in desperation, flung himself on God and said, “I can’t do this alone. You have to go with me!” God used him to save and deliver the nation of Israel (Ps 106:23).

Elijah allowed God to feed him and watch over him while he slept. He listened for God’s still, small voice in the earthquake and the flood. And he received God’s comfort and assurance that he was not alone. He climbed back down the mountain, completed the work God had for him, and retired in a blaze of glory (2 Kings 2:11).

And Job. Poor Job. He continued to trust God, love his wife, and pray for his friends. God used him to show millions of believers how to walk through trials with faith and courage. And he blessed the second half of Job’s life more than the first.

“Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him,” Job said (Job 13:15).

So what’s the secret to continuing rather than quitting?

Two of my favorite Christians, the apostle Paul and Elisabeth Elliot, answer this question.

And before you say, “They didn’t know what I’m going through,” listen to Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians 1:8: “We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death.”

Then listen to what Paul discovered about the reason for his trials: “But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope . . .” (9,10).

Paul reached the end of his human strength and tapped into a power source far greater than anything he could muster up—God’s. And because Paul didn’t quit, God used him to evangelize Europe and write over half of the New Testament.

And then there’s Elisabeth Elliot, whose first husband was martyred on the mission field when she was 30, leaving her with a 10-month-old daughter, and whose second husband died from cancer. Because she didn’t quit, she and her fellow missionary wives led an entire tribe to faith in Christ and mentored millions of Christian women through books, radio shows, and one-on-one discipleship.

How did she keep going when she wanted to quit? Listen to her words:

“Trust in God, obey him, and do the next thing.”

If you feel like quitting today, you’re not alone. And you’re not a failure. You’re in the perfect place for God to do something absolutely amazing. It may not happen in a day. Or in a week. Or even in a year, but it will happen.

"His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'” (Mat. 25:23). 

May you find your strength in God and do the next thing.






If you're reading by email, click here to listen to Pentatonix' phenomenal rendition of Little Drummer Boy. It will cure what ails you. 

I love the newly-designed, glossy cover!

I suspect there are quite a few busy women on your Christmas list. Friends, co-workers, fellow church members, and your children's teachers, coaches, and babysitters, just to name a few. If you'd like to give them a gift that will draw them closer to the Lord, encourage them to spend time in God's Word, and think biblically, Hungry for God ... Starving for Time, Five-Minute Devotions for Busy Women is the gift you're looking for. 

And what about those special women in your life that may not have a relationship with the Lord? In the last devotion in the book, I share what it means to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. Giving someone you care about a copy of HFG is not just passing along spiritual encouragement, it's a gentle, winsome way to share the gospel.

Hungry for God . . . Starving for Time is available through Amazon.com,BarnesandNoble.com, and Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas. 

If you live in the Columbia, South Carolina area, I'd love to autograph and personalize copies for your special friends. Email me at LoriAHatcher@gmail.com.

If you enjoyed this post, why not subscribe? I'll send you twice-weekly 5-minute devotions to help nourish your soul. 
Because women need to connect with God in the craziness of life. 

Enter your email address and VALIDATE the Feedburner email sent to your inbox.



Delivered by FeedBurner

What to Do When You Fail -- And You Will

Failure.

It’s humiliating, embarrassing, and sometimes debilitating. Some failures are public, and everyone knows it. Others are private, mercifully so, but still humiliating and humbling. 

I’m not talking about moral failure. That’s an entirely different subject. I’m talking about the times when we simply fall short. Fail to accomplish. Mess up. Drop the ball. Bomb. This happened to me twice in one day recently.

Twice.

The first was a professional fail. My editor (yes, even editors have editors) updated me on her progress on my upcoming women’s devotional book. “I expected to be further along than I am at this time,” she typed, and then proceeded (kindly) to share the reason why she wasn’t—carelessness on my part had created many extra hours of work and much frustration for this sweet lady. I was mortified.

The second fail was also professional. I submitted a request to a prominent local athlete asking for an interview for the magazine with which I work. I chose my words carefully, hoping he would consent to talk with me, then clicked SEND.

Later that evening I discovered I had spelled his first name wrong.

FAIL.

I know in the grand panorama of life these occurrences are relatively minor, but that day, they seemed huge. As I pondered my failures, I struggled to shake the sludge of discouragement, disappointment, and embarrassment that clung to and tried to defeat me.

But Christians don’t have to be slaves to our emotions. Instead, we can (and should) process life through a biblical worldview. The Holy Spirit, living in our hearts, helps us do this. On that miserable day, before the blush of embarrassment had fully faded from my face, God started speaking to my heart. This is what he said:

How Christians Handle Failure 

1. Ask yourself why the failure occurred. The answer will show you what to do next.

Did you fail because of sin? Were you lazy, careless, selfish, prideful, or negligent?

If yes, the first step to correction is confession. Confess your sin to God, and then to whomever else was affected. This is humbling and embarrassing, which it should be.

The second step is to do what you can to make restitution or correction.

The third step is to do whatever is necessary to ensure it won’t happen again. The sting of judgment, confession, and repentance isn’t wasted if it motivates us to avoid the same sin in the future. Sadly, it sometimes takes multiple failures for us to fully embrace change. I’m glad God continues to work in our lives, gradually conforming us to the image of Christ.

Did you fail because of ignorance or a lack of training? Did the task require skills you didn’t have? Knowledge you failed to possess? Material you lacked?

If the answer is yes, identify where the breakdown occurred and explore ways to gain that knowledge, experience, or resources. Is there a book you can read, a class you can take, or a mentor who might be willing to train and work with you on the next project?

Sometimes we fail simply because we are ignorant. Notice I didn’t say stupid. Stupid is unteachable. Ignorant is simply untaught. Ignorance is curable. Stupidity usually isn’t. If additional knowledge or experience is at the root of your failure, purpose to learn all you can so you’ll be better prepared the next time.

Did you fail because the job was too big for you?

Sometimes we attempt great things and God shows up and supernaturally empowers us. Other times, we try, fail, and wonder if God was out to lunch when we needed him. It’s never wrong to have ambitious goals and attempt great things. I’d rather stretch to reach for something lofty than sit in the dirt and never make it off the ground. Even when I fall short, I’m closer to the goal than if I never attempt it.

2. Process your failure biblically. Repeat these truths to yourself as often as necessary:

Just because I failed doesn’t mean I am a failure. Any great man or woman attempts much that they don’t accomplish. They also attempt much that they do. The only true way to fail is never to try.

This failure doesn’t have to define me. Tomorrow is a new day, filled with new opportunities. The apostle Paul reminds us, “Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13-14).

I'm only human, and humans fail. To expect never to fail is naïve and unrealistic. What matters most is not IF I fail, but how I react WHEN I fail. God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6).

When I examined my failures, they stemmed from a combination of carelessness and impatience (sin) and ignorance (lack of knowledge). I confessed and repented of my sin to the Lord and my editor and asked their forgiveness. They graciously extended it. I sent a new message to the student athlete and apologized for my carelessness. To combat my ignorance, I took note of what I had done wrong and immediately began to implement steps to ensure the problem won’t happen again.

Finally, we must forgive ourselves, acknowledge our frailties, and keep pressing forward. We can rest in the confidence that the Lord is our helper, and his mercies are new every morning. Great is his faithfulness.

 How about you? Have you failed at something and learned a valuable lesson from it? I’d love to hear your story. Leave a comment below and bless us all.

To subscribe, sign up below & VALIDATE the Feedburner email sent to your inbox.
Enter your email address:


Delivered by FeedBurner

Hungry for God is on Facebook! Will you take a moment and LIKE my page? CLICK HERE to help HFG share 5-minute devotions.