“That is why we never give up.
Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our
present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a
glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!”
-2 Corinthians 4:15-17 NLT
The difference between faithful
people and unfaithful people is unfaithful people give up at the first sign of
difficulty. Faithful people keep on keeping on. Faithful people are determined.
Faithful people are diligent. Faithful people are persistent. Faithful people
don’t know how to quit. You know how a little acorn becomes an oak tree? An oak
tree is just an acorn that refused to give up.
I’m not that smart, but I do know
one thing: It is always too soon to quit. You are never a failure until you
quit, and it’s always too soon to quit. God uses tough times to test our
persistence.
When we started Saddleback, I
preached the first sermon to one person: my wife. She thought it was too long.
Thirty-one years later, she’s still saying my sermons are too long!
I thought when we started a church
we’d get a building quickly. We went 15 years without a building. In the first
13 years of this church, we used 79 different facilities. You know how many
times I felt like giving up? Just every Monday morning! But I don’t know how to
quit. And God said, “Rick, if I never give you a building, would you still
serve me?” And I said, “Absolutely!”
Saddleback grew to more than 10,000
people before we built our first building. How would you like to set up and take
down a church for 10,000 people every week? There’s not a lot of glory in that.
It’s just hard work. God uses tough times to test our persistence.
If you’re going through tough times
right now, then this verse is for you: “That
is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being
renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long.
Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last
forever!” (2 Corinthians 4:15-17 NLT)
God is more interested in what
you’re becoming than what’s happening to you. He often allows trials, troubles,
tribulations, and problems in your life to teach you diligence, determination,
and character. The problem you’re going through right now? It’s a test of your
faithfulness. Will you continue to serve God even when life stinks?
“Let us not become
weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not
give up” (Galatians 6:9 NIV).
This devotional ©2013 by Rick Warren. All
rights reserved. Used by permission.
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