How to Keep Going When You Feel Like Giving Up

What do you do when everything seems dark and hopeless? How do you keep going when you feel like giving up? I like the way the US Marines put it, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." The problem is that most of us aren't Marines and most of us don't see ourselves as tough. I tried to deal with this issue in last Sunday's sermon. Of course in a sermon you can only crack the surface. I used the prophet, Jeremiah as my example. We are a little over half way through the Read the Bible in 90 days program; we are currently reading Jeremiah. The Biblical text used was Jeremiah 1.

Jeremiah lived a life that seemed hopeless. He was called by God to be a prophet during the last days of Judah. He was told to give a message that was hopeless, and ignored by most people. He faced persecution, imprisonment and even death to present his message; being a prophet was not always the safest way to live. In this first chapter, God makes it plain that He had called Jeremiah as a prophet; in fact, he had appointed Jeremiah while he was still in his mother's womb (I wont go into a discourse on abortion at this juncture). Jerry told the Lord that he was afraid to speak, "I am only a child." Now we don't know how old J was when this discourse was taking place, but I think that most of us can identify when given such an overwhelming task
that we feel like a child.

God told Jeremiah that He would give him the words to speak and that He (God) would be with him always. He showed a vision to Jeremiah that signified that God would back up His words by action; this was a promise. Then God showed Jeremiah a vision that boded ill for Judah. The word that Jeremiah was to speak was one of destruction on the people if they didn't repent. Finally God told Jerry not to be afraid of the people. In fact, if you want to be afraid, be afraid of me, "The fear of the Lord is the begging of wisdom."

If we read the entire book of Jeremiah, we find that the prophet was faithful in word and deed. When the going got tough, Jeremiah got going. How?

1. He knew who he was in the Lord. He had encountered God in a real way.
   
2. He knew his purpose. God had made his task very plain.
3. He heard and believed God when He said, "I will be with you." He was not alone.
4. He knew God's message; God had told him.
5. He believed that God would do what God said He would do.
6. He believed that God would protect him from the people.

Can we find some principles for ourselves in this lesson from Jeremiah. I think so. When the going gets tough, we can keep going if we have the following:

1. Believe that God has a purpose for your life; know that purpose.
2. Let Jesus be Lord of your life (Lordship means that we obey).
3. Accept the fact that you have been forgiven and that you are a new creation; I am not bound by past failures.
4. Let the Holy Spirit empower you. As Paul said, "when I am weak, I am strong."
5. Listen to God. The problem is not that God doesn't speak, the problem is that we rarely listen.
6. Do what God commands.
7. Believe his promise, "Lo, I am with you always."
8. Believe that he always has your back.

I know that we can be paralyzed with fear. I know that we can suffer depression. I believe that things can keep us from going on. I also know that sometimes we need the Psychologist or Psychiatrist. We may also need help from others. But, these principles go a long way toward helping us to live victorious lives. Remember, courage is not lack of fear. Courage is doing the right thing even though we are afraid.