Did you watch the Olympic Games?
What impression have they left with you?
For me, the theme Never Give Up! has come across in so many different ways. In my last post The Great Race I about running well in our Christian lives and how we could compare it to the races happening in the Olympics with what the athletes themselves were pushing themselves through to achieve their dream, and how it wasn’t easy for them.
Along with the winners, who have been so delighted to triumph and win, we have also seen
many more who have lost out on their dream. When being interviewed though, there is something interesting about their words. They are disappointed, upset, sometimes devastated that they missed out on their dream but they add the words, “I’ll just have to work harder and come back and do better in Tokyo.” Tokyo is 4 years away, yet they are already gearing themselves up for the next challenge. Yes, they feel the failure, but they don’t want to stay there! They are already looking to their next goal and going to go and work hard for it. Also there are several winners who have been losers in previous years, but have picked themselves up, kept going, and now say, “It was all worth it!”
How many of us pick up ourselves that quickly after failure? Do we feel like “That’s it, I’ve failed, God can’t use me anymore,” and stay there, or do we go to God for forgiveness, and ask for His strength to overcome and not fall there again?
One of my favourite verses in the Bible is found in Micah.
Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; when I fall, I will arise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me. Micah 7:8
Don’t you just love the fight in those words? The dart to defiantly throw back at Satan when he delights to make us feel a failure and it’s all hopeless after we have messed up. Don’t rejoice, because even though I’ve fallen, I will arise!
Here’s a song to sing with your children to encourage them when life is not easy: ♫ When the Road is Rough and Steep ♫. I remember singing this a lot during the Junior Camp I attended as a pre-teen. The words are still with me today.
It isn’t just the athletes who don’t give up.
Someone else didn’t give up.
The Lord Jesus Christ.
Can you imagine what it must have been like to come from the glory of heaven to dwell on earth?
To have questions about your conception and parentage?
To not be believed?
To take that path to the cross, knowing that was the only reason you were on earth in the first place? That was not easy for Him. When the time came for that final journey to Jerusalem, Luke 9:51 says, “He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem.” He had to be determined. No one was going to distract Him from His purpose and the will of His Father.
Then we remember the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus prayed “Father, if it Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done.” (Luke 22:42). He struggled with what He knew He was about to endure.
Verse 43 says Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him. If Jesus had to pray during adversity, then certainly we must, and the strengthening came to Him after He had prayed.
And being in agony He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling to the ground. (v44).
Then we have betrayal followed by the horrors of the arrest and false trial, mocking, beatings, scourging, the rejection from the people as they choose Barabbas over Him, and then the humiliation along with the physical agony of being nailed to a cross on top of all the other atrocities He had already endured. Finally He died.
It looked like Satan had won.
But 3 days later He arose. He had conquered sin, death and the grave and given everyone who believes in Him as Lord and Saviour of their lives the opportunity to go to heaven.
Our sins have been paid for. We can have a home in heaven. Satan has been defeated. We can be free.
He never gave up!
And He considers us worth that sacrifice ~ isn’t that amazing? In the words of Stuart Townend “Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer!” (From his hymn ♫ How Deep the Father’s Love ♫.)
Did He get rewarded for His sacrifice? Absolutely. Read Philippians 2:5-11, Hebrews 1:1-4, 2:9-10 to see how God has highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name.
When the athletes train and then race, their eye is on the gold medal. While the Lord Jesus Christ has received honour and glory for His sacrifice, His eye was on our redemption…and that just blows my mind!
I’m so glad He didn’t give up!
My prayer is that I don’t give up on Him!
What about you?
Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 4:14-16
~ Wendy Sparkes ~
Here are some posts I’ve written previously that might help to encourage you and point you to some books that will help you overcome and to never give up:
It’s Not Too Late ~ Discover the people in the Bible who despite mistakes let God in to turn their lives around.
Spiritual Strongholds ~ Find out how to break the stronghold that has taken place in your life.
Power of Prayer ~ Stormie Omartian’s books cover all aspects of our lives and how we can
cover everything in prayer, leading to a full and abundant life.
Who Has Your Heart? ~ A Bible heroine for those women, young or old who are struggling with the single life to encourage them to keep going. Very inspiring and highly recommended!
Preparing Your Sons and Daughters for Every Man’s and Woman’s Battle ~ Helping prepare your children for the temptations they will face in keeping themselves pure, and also covering books to help yourselves in your own battle with purity.
Eight Ways to Keep the Devil Under Your Feet ~ Joyce Meyer shows us how to have power over the devil and keep him under our feet so that he doesn’t get the upper hand in our lives.