Not giving up.

So here I am, 5:21am in the amorning, having the daily battle with myself. I don’t know why this is always happening, but it is. NO matter how many thousands of times I get my butt outside to that garage to workout, I always without fail have this time where I literally argue with myself about why I shouldn’t have to workout today. “I’ve been exercising like a maniac all week long…one day off won’t kill me”, or “I’m just soooo tired from sitting in nursing class all day, so I really need to rest and just watch a movie” or my personal favorite to use, “I’m just being way to hard on myself. I need to learn to say NO to things once in awhile!” Hahaha never had a problem saying “no” to going to the beach, or hanging out with my best friend all weekend, or talking to my boyfriend all night long. Nope, we’re all good there! But no, seriously…why?
Because I am afraid.

I am afraid of working hard sometimes. I am afraid of the pain and discomfort that I know I am going to feel while my heart rate is sky high, sweat is pouring into my eyes, and my legs and arms are shaking like noodles. Working out isn’t always fun ya’ll. Props to whoever leaps out of their warm cocoon of a bed out into the icy blast of that 5 am morning air, practically falling down the stairs because they are so anxious to start doing mountain climbers and other of P90X’s wonderful tortures. Hopping around to get their shoes on, dashing past the coffee…psh who needs that stuff? I am strong. I am all mighty. I need no coffee.

I’d love to personally meet that person at kick them in the teeth.

Just kidding. Please don’t ever do that ahahaha. But I am trying to make a point here. Doing what we know is right and good for us isn’t always easy. And I’m just using exercise as an example because that’s one of my main passions in life, and also one of my hardest things to beat. What’s yours? Maybe it’s choosing healthy foods? Maybe it’s studying for an exam rather than going out one night? Maybe it’s dealing with respecting others i.e. your spouse, your boss, your co-workers, your parents? Maybe it’s being faithful in your work…whatever is in your life, I know with absolute certainty that you encounter times when you honestly don’t give a crap about whatever it is you’re doing. You want to quit. You are ready to just up and leave. You feel completely justified in throwing in the towel, and you very well might be.

But is that what we were made for? Were we really created to just stop the second life got tough? Were we designed to just flop on our backs and surrender the moment opposition came our way? Absolutely not. Friends, let me tell you something. In my very short 19 years of life, I have learned many things about life, and what honoring the Lord is about. And in my searching the Word and examining and studying what the Lord may have made me to be like, I have come to find this: He made me to be strong. And not just physically. No, I was created to be physically, emotionally, and spiritually strong in my Lord, and in HIS mighty power! Think of Joshua. Here he was, a young man who suddenly, after following Moses, was called to lead Israel to the promised land after the Israelites had disobeyed God and were forbidden to enter Canaan. Joshua must’ve been scared out of his freakin’ mind. And When God came to Joshua and told him He was going to lead Israel, He didn’t give him a list of “Top Ten Leadership Qualities” to follow. He didn’t give him a 6-month budget plan. He simply said this: “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”

That is all we need ever know. The Lord is with us, and we have nothing to fear. When life get’s hard, and I assure you it most definitely will, call to mind this truth: You were made to be strong. You Christian, have the Holy Spirit within you, and He will supply you with all the guts, all the endurance, all the “I’m just gonna put my head down and run” drive you need. “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power!” Close your eyes. Breathe. Reach down in the deepest part of your being and call to mind who is running right next to you. Remember the One who is spurring you on and screaming encouragement into you ear. Lifting your weary spirit. When there seems to be no hope at all, think of your Savior and how he hung on that cross, hopeless and separated from the One He loved, His Father…just so you, my dear friend, might have a future and a hope. Salvation. Freedom. Joy. Intimacy with the Father. Oh, that beautiful, scandalous, unending love that the Father has lavished on us. Let that spur you on.

Do you not know?

Have you not heard?

The LORD is the everlasting God,

the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary,

and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary

and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary,

and young men stumble and fall;

 but those who hope in the LORD

will renew their strength.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.