Don’t Give Up: How to Find Hope in Difficult Times
Are you tired? Do you feel like giving up?
I’m here to tell you … don’t! Don’t give up!
It’s easy for us to look around and wonder what in the world is going on. Inflation. Wars and rumors of war. Crime. Relationship failures. Illness. Debt. Loss. Failure. Weakness. Sin. And on and on and on.
It’s hard to hold on to hope when everywhere we look and everything we hear tells us it’s all hopeless.
But what if I told you that the voices of hopelessness are lying to you?
I want to give you a simple message of truth today…
Don’t give up!
God is on the throne. He always has been and He always will be. He is the everlasting Creator who never grows weak or weary. Everything is possible in His Kingdom because He promises that His children endure life’s challenges and do His will through Christ who gives them strength. (based on Philippians 4:13)
Isaiah wrote…
Have you never heard?
Isaiah 40:18—31
Have you never understood?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of all the earth.
He never grows weak or weary.
No one can measure the depths of His understanding.
He gives power to the weak
and strength to the powerless.
Even youths will become weak and tired,
and young men will fall in exhaustion.
But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength.
They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary.
They will walk and not faint.
Don’t give up!
The Lord of the universe is with you. He will never be too weak or too tired to help you. And He is able to give you exactly what you need when you ask Him for help.
When you and I place our trust in the Lord, He promises to give us strength.
Sometimes that strength will help us soar above our problems, sometimes it will make it possible for us to run through them to the other side, and sometimes it will be just enough to take the necessary steps today.
But the certain unfailing promise is … God promises to help us find our way to the other side…
The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, He will show you a way out so that you can endure.
1 Corinthians 10:13
David faced enemies and difficulties on every side but he never stopped believing and hoping. He turned to God in faith proclaiming…
Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
Psalm 27:13—14
while I am here in the land of the living.
Wait patiently for the Lord.
Be brave and courageous.
Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.
Whatever you’re facing today…
Don’t give up!
Let’s pray…
Don’t Give Up:
A Prayer for God’s Help in Difficult Times
Father, we look around and so many of us are living through difficult times. It can feel like the world is upside down. Right is declared wrong and wrong right. There are personal problems, relationship difficulties, financial struggles, and health challenges. There are national issues that confuse and upset us. And when we put it all together, we wonder if it wouldn’t be easier to give up and give in.
Please forgive me for allowing my fears and frustrations to distract and rob me of the hope You want to give me. I’m sorry for believing that I can be self-sufficient and for considering giving up before confidently giving it to You.
Please help me live each day filled with faith, hope, and love. The Good News is that those are things You offer to give generously. Help me humble my heart before You. Help me surrender myself to You. And help me fully open my heart to You that I might share Your love with everyone You place beside me.
May I faithfully hear Your Spirit say, “Don’t give up!” May I trust You to give me everything I need. May I give myself to You in faith, trusting You to safely guide me along the path to life in Your presence forever. All because of Jesus, in whose name I pray. Amen.
Jesus is the source of our hope…
May our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.
2 Corinthians 2:16–17
He is the light shining in our hearts…
We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
2 Corinthians 4:7
That is why we never give up…
That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day. For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!
2 Corinthians 4:16–17
Don’t give up!
The Lord promises to give us what we need to say…
I won’t give up!
And He gives us what we need to follow through.
May the Lord bless you and give you everything you need to live each with the hope you need to never give up.
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God bless you, Deb, for all the inspiration He has revealed to you and for sharing all this wisdom with us!
Thanks, Martha! Blessings and hugs!
If we ever do give up, that is saying that we are giving up on God! But I absolutely know, that God will never give up on me! Sometimes, with all the chaos that this world is drowning in, I get weary…so very weary. But, Lamentations 3-21/22
says: “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness.” Therefore, I can keep going! I look back on all the fires, the pain, heart aches, heart breaks, the grief of the times I did give up; and yet, here I sit this morning in the comfort of His presence and all His promises. He brought me up out of the miry clay too many times to count. And even though the world is crashing to smithereens around us ” I PRESS toward the mark for the PRIZE of the high calling of GOD in CHRIST JESUS. (Philippians 3:14). Thank You, Deb for the reminder “Don’t give up.” God will always make a way in our wilderness and give us a river in our desert. Praise His Holy Name!
And I ditto Martha’s comment! God knew, we all needed You! And has given us a great disciple to follow and learn from. Bless you Deb, for I’m sure you may have moments of wanting to give up, since your beloved Rev’s passing;
and yet, we are all witnessing that you continue to press on. Thank you. Sending you a big hug of admiration across the miles.
Beautifully said, Kathy. Your heart is so pure and good.
Love Hugs to You,
Sue
Isn’t that an awesome blessing, Kathy? I love that the Lord wants us to KNOW that He will never give up on us. He is our Good Shepherd doing whatever is needed to keep us close and care for us. Today is the anniversary of a very painful day in my life but, praise God, I am able to glorify Him that many years later I KNOW God is with me and that He is the One who sustained me and carried me through. Thank you for your support and encouragement. Blessings and hugs, dear friend.
Deb,
You are absolutely right. We are living in troubled times and it is so easy to get discouraged. So many things and events are trying to interfere with our hope. I, like you, know and trust that God is in charge and it is all in HIS LOVING HANDS. He sure has been here for me and has NEVER let me down. I don’t always get the answer I thought I should get, but I do know in HIS HANDS my best interest is at heart. I have said this many times and I mean it from deep in my heart, I am so thankful I found this website and now have two wonderful Christian friends because of it! YOU AND KATHY! You have both been a blessing to me and I am so thankful for YOUR wisdom and knowledge in these posts. You have helped me through a lot. Truly a GOD SEND!! You are a very strong lady. AND we both know where that strength comes from. Our ALMIGHTY LORD! Blessings to you and many hugs and much love my dear friend.
Such a beautiful post, Sue! And I am so thankful I found Deb too! And think God brought us together through Deb! I am so sorry I havnt been able to send you a private email. I can receive, but cant send. Ken said his wouldn’t send either! We may get new phones soon and I am trying to get my laptop fixed as it won’t even let me open my emails! These gadgets! Wonderful when they work! Have a great evening dear friend! I love you!
Good Morning Kathy,
It is okay. I truly understand. Electronics can be a challenge! I am in need of a new lap top myself and will get around to buying one soon. This one is fine. It works fine for what I do on the computer.
I am just so grateful for your friendship and for Deb’s. You both have carried me and encouraged me through some very troubling times. God bless you my friend. Love and hugs to you also.
You are truly a blessings, Sue. You inspire us as you share your faith and God has definitely given you the gift of encouragement. I love the God is able to take our faith stories and use them to build up and strengthen others in their faith. You do that for me and for all of us here. Thanks so much, dear friend! God bless you!
Thank you Deb. And I am sorry that this day is a painful reminder to you of what happened years ago. I definitely can identify. This has been a hard week for me and this is a story similiar to yours in many ways. You are in my prayers always, but I will say more today for you.
You are such a good friend and I am so thankful that God led me in this direction to you.
I always have to remember the saying I read, “If God brings you to it, God will get you through it.”
God’s blessing to you sweet friend!
I’m trying to trust in the Lord with all my heart and not give up. Today we received a letter from our mortgage lender . Our home insurance has doubled which makes our monthly payment more than we can afford. My husband and I are on a fixed income and our monthly mortgage payments will be half of what we receive each month. While scrolling through my emails I clicked on your post for today. It lightened my anxiety and brought peace to my soul. Please pray for us that God will make a way where there seems to be no way. May God continue to bless you as you bless others.
Joyce,
You will have many here praying for you. Rest Assured!!
I’m so very sorry you are going through this difficult time, Joyce. We are here to encourage and pray for you. Ask the Lord to go before you to provide the way and walk beside you to give you strength and courage. Blessings and hugs!
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Thank you! I use the Kadence theme but designed it myself. Thanks for your kind encouragement. You made my day! Blessings!
First of all I want to say superb blog! I had a quick
question in which I’d like to ask if you don’t mind.
I was curious to know how you center yourself and clear your head prior
to writing. I’ve had difficulty clearing my thoughts in getting my thoughts out.
I truly do take pleasure in writing however it just seems like the first 10 to 15 minutes are
lost simply just trying to figure out how to begin. Any
recommendations or tips? Appreciate it!
Hi Tanisha, Thank you! It depends. Sometimes I have an idea in advance and sometimes it takes some time to get started. I do prayerfully approach my writing time and often I just start writing thoughts editing and re-editing as I go. I would say, just write what the Lord lays on your heart, stay grounded in His Word, and go from there. God’s blessings. I hope you keep in touch.
Please pray for our daughter and her husband who are in a battle to stay married after addiction has been been revealed. They are Believers in Christ. Thankyou
I’m sorry, June! We’re praying for you and asking the Lord to give you all His strength and direction and you walk the days ahead! May He be with you and bless you!
Thank you for this reminder of the hope we have, Deb.
Love,
Lori
Thank you, sweet friend! Blessings, prayers, and hugs!
Beautiful words and prayers to help us not give up. Trusting in Jesus Christ and God our Father through their love, grace, and mercy they will guide us in our lives. Through your blood shed and holy water you have redeemed us from our sins so that some day we can be in your eternal Kingdom. Without you our lives can be difficult but you are always with us listening to our prayers and lifting us up when we fall. Have Mercy on me Jesus and help me to not give up knowing you are at my sight.
I’m joining you in that beautiful prayer, Ana! Thank you! God bless you!