Never, Never, Never.
I was reminded recently of the the famous excerpt from a speech made by Winston Churchill in 1941. It was October 29, after the Blitz, and things were looking up a bit for Britain. Churchill encouraged his audience to Never give in – never, never, never, never, in nothing great or small…
I don’t think he said this because things were looking up. It was not a forgone conclusion the war was won by the allies. Far from it. Rather, I believe he said it because he knew there was still much to face. There were still to be many battles to be fought. The people needed a reminder to stay the course. To keep fighting. To stay true.
Perhaps you need that reminder today. Does work have you beat? Maybe your teen made yet another bad choice and you are wondering if it’s even worth the effort to keep trying. Or it could be your spouse. The one person you are supposed to always be able to lean on has let you down once again and you just don’t know if you can go on. The fights are getting worse. You can’t stand the silence… or the yelling. You are afraid to talk because you know it will lead to yet another argument. The reasons to stay together are getting fewer and fewer. If it weren’t for the kid’s sake you’d just leave now.
Ephesians 3:20-21
Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Don’t give in. Never give in. Never, never, never.
Christ didn’t.
And the great news for each of us is that it is Christ’s power that is at work within us. Take a moment to see the eternal. To focus on Him. To believe that our light and momentary troubles will soon pass. I know what you are thinking: “Light and momentary! Who are you kidding?” Our struggles rarely feel light and momentary. To us they are huge. To us they go on day, after day, after day. But to God and His perspective of eternity, they are but brief moments in time. And yet, because they are important to us, they are also important to Him. Jesus wants to help us carry our burdens. He is there for us… willing to shoulder our burdens with us.
God is always near us (Acts 17:27). We may not see Him, but that doesn’t mean He doesn’t care and isn’t right here with us. Read the Bible. You’ll find it’s true.
Now I know some of you who are facing marriage struggles don’t believe me. You seriously believe that divorce is the easier way out. A few more months of arguing and it’ll all be over. It’s not worth the work to reconcile. Don’t buy that lie! Seek God’s understanding. If you put half the effort into reconciling as you do in fighting, or avoiding fighting, you’d be better off. If you put half the money into marriage counseling as you are paying your lawyer you’d be better off. If, gulp, you could just admit that you too are a sinner in need of God’s strength to swallow your pride and admit that you are not the perfect spouse and your mate isn’t the anti-Christ, you just might stand a chance at having a great marriage.
Did you know that among those who rated their marriages as very unhappy, almost eight out of ten who avoided divorce were happily married five years later? That’s great news for many of you.
This may be a novel thought… rather than staying together for the sake of the kids, why not fight for a better marriage? Marriage isn’t something to be endured, but something to be enjoyed. Don’t accept that because your marriage stinks now that it always will. 5 years from now it just may be the best marriage ever.