Time to Give Up

I am sure you have heard of the saying, "It is darkest before the dawn." This axiom is used by well intentioned people to encourage us to keep persevering in our trials. The words soothe our souls with the hope that our redemption will arrive just when we are ready to give up.

Sadly, the statement is scientifically inaccurate. It is not darkest before the dawn. A matter of fact, there is a lot of light before the sunrise. It is the darkest in the middle of the night, when the sky is overcast, the moon is hidden on the other side of the earth, and you are in the middle of nowhere.

Truthfully, we do not want to embrace this image of despair. We do not enjoy the idea of being all alone, forgotten, and in the dark. We cringe at the idea of screaming out to God and hearing our words ominously echo into the night.

Why? Because our culture is afraid of pain, suffering, and persecution. And we want to escape it, quickly. We strive HARD to find a cure for our pain, an escape from our suffering, and a well deserved respite for our persecution. We scream out to God, "Make this STOP!" And in some cases, our agony dramatically comes to an end. In other cases, our deliverance arrives eventually. Yet, there are many times when it doesn't disappear. The pain continues until the end of our lives.

Honestly, it does not seem fair. I have watched friends of mine go through pain and suffering. They have faithfully prayed, accessed the services of professionals, and frantically searched scripture for spiritual guidance. And nothing ever seems to happen for them. Does God hate them? NO. Has God forgotten about them? NEVER. I don't believe any of that, not for a moment. However, in Ecclesiastes 3:6, King Solomon reminds us that there is a time to give up. Throw in the towel. Walk away from it all. Quit.

But, "Quitters never prosper!" Actually, I believe there are times when the only way to really prosper, in the true sense of the word, is to quit. Sometimes we do need to let go of the dreams we have been frantically chasing in order to receive the treasures of darkness. Other times we need to stop kidding ourselves that things are working out and face the reality of our defeat. As spoken by a speaker at our church, "Nothing is impossible with God. But that doesn't mean everything will be easy with God."

The above melancholy line of thought reminds me of one of my favorite passages of scripture:

Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. The Sovereign LORD is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to go on the heights.
Habakkuk 3:17-19

While I may despair in life and be forced to give up at times, I hope and pray that I will be joyful in God my Savior and live the life God has given me with His strength.

(Thanks to Mrs. Loquacious and Despair, Inc. for the inspiration to write this post.)

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