“Stand firm. Let nothing move you.” 1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV
“Refuse to be discouraged by difficulty or dissuaded by doubters.”
My thoughts today are about being “immovable.”
Frank Sinatra sang, “When an irresistible force such as you, meets an immovable object like me – somethin’s gotta give.” Are you immovable? Everybody feels like quitting sometimes, but nobody wants to be a quitter. There are times and things you should quit; you pretty well know what those are. There are times and things when you should not. You need to learn what those are also. The trick is to know which is which.
If you are doing what you should not be doing, you cannot quit that fast enough. And if what you are doing is not working out for you, it’s probably a good time to reconsider and try something different. But if you are doing what you ought to be doing, and if it’s not working just because you are not working hard enough, that’s definitely not the time to quit. You may need to quit your half-hearted efforts and give up your lame excuses for doing so, but do not give up on yourself, others, or God. Read Psalm 62:5-8 NKJV.
Nehemiah is a good example of a leader and worker who would not quit what he was called by God to do. He refused to be discouraged by difficulty or dissuaded by doubters. When the enemies of Jerusalem’s rebuilding wanted to stop the work being rapidly accomplished on repairing and restoring the city’s walls, they repeatedly asked for a meeting with Nehemiah. Listen to his no-nonsense response, “I am doing a great work and I cannot come down. Why should the work cease while I leave it and come down to you?” Read Nehemiah 6:1-9 NAS. The enemy of your soul will try anything to “get you down,” like they tried to get Nehemiah down. Has it been working?
As a boy, when I would complain about a classmate’s criticism, my Dad sometimes quoted this, “I hate the guys who criticize and minimize the other guys, whose enterprise has made them rise above the guys who criticize and minimize.” The enemy cannot get you down as long as you will rise above. Dad expected me to be one who “rises above.” With that perspective, I realized it really only mattered that I thought what I was doing was the right thing. You have to know absolutely that what you are doing is what you are supposed to be doing, in obedience to God and with His blessing.
The enemy’s goal is still the same, to get you to quit what you should not quit – doing the very thing God has promised to bless. “So that no advantage would be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes.” 2 Corinthians 2:11 NAS. The enemy’s tactics are also the same – worry over less than ample resources and ability, and weariness in the labor and difficulty of your task. “Let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season you shall reap, if you faint not. As you have opportunity, do good to all men.” Galatians 6:9-10 KJV. There are times you have to just keep on keeping on.
And if those devilish schemes don’t succeed in your quitting, your enemy will use warfare. “Put on God’s armor so that you will be able to stand against all strategies and tricks of the devil . . not fighting against flesh and blood, but against . . mighty powers of darkness . . resist the enemy so that after every battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground.” Read Ephesians 6:10-18 NLT.
My prayer for you today is that you remain steadfast, unmovable, always abounding!