There have been many times in my life where I’ve been tempted to give up on someone.
I’m sure you’ve been there before, too.
You’ve watched someone make the same bad decisions over and over. Also, you’ve prayed for them and had hard conversations with them. As well as serving them over and over. And yet… nothing good seems to come from it.
They keep jumping back into the same mistakes. Maybe they have started to avoid you. Perhaps they don’t respond anymore. Or they have flat out disappeared.
I’m sure you have heard that little voice in the back of your head that shouts, “This is not worth it anymore!” I’ve heard it, too. And to my shame, there have been people like this in my life that (over the years) I’ve simply given up on.
One of the things the Lord has been pressing on me lately is this: He has never run out of patience with me.
“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning;” — Lamentations 3:22-23
I am so thankful that God hasn’t run out of patience toward me and that He continues to pursue me. How about you?
Today, I would love you to consider this: The same patience and mercy that Jesus demonstrates toward you can flow through you.
Move Toward Them
The Lord wants us to continue moving toward people. Yes, even the ones who you may feel like giving up on!
“And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 …always seek to do good to one another and to everyone.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15
What could these verses practically look like for you today? Maybe it’s as simple as refusing to disappear. It’s sending the text you’ve been meaning to send or offering to grab coffee with the person who has been distant. Praying instead of complaining, encouraging instead of gossiping. In other words, it’s letting them know you’re still there for them.
Has God placed someone on your heart right now? Someone who’s been a real challenge for you to love?
Don’t withdraw from them, and don’t complain about them. Pray for them and ask God to give you the ability to pursue them today. Even if it’s just to remind them that you care. You never know what that text message or conversation may do. But the Lord does!
Every day the Lord always meets you with new mercies. Ask Him to help you extend that same mercy toward others today. Yes, even the really difficult ones.
Posted in A Word from the Pastor