Don't Give Up

I was challenged today with this idea:

Do not give up.  It is incredibly easy to stop doing something I have started and even have felt compelled to start.  New things and the beginnings of things are always filled with excitement and anticipation.  I feel like I can conquer the world :)  And yet, after awhile, the excitement wears off and the anticipation grows thin.  I no longer feel as compelled and even find myself asking, "Does it really matter?  Is there purpose and a good enough reason to keep doing all this?"  It is in this moment I have a choice to make.  Walk away or keep going.

In the Old Testament this same thing occurred.....at least the way I see it.  God gave the people an assignment, a promise...."Take the Promised Land.  It is yours!  I have given it to you."  There was a lot of fear involved with this, but there were a few good men who fought through the fear, pushed through and took the Promised Land and claimed what had been given to them.  Yeah Israelites!  Yeah God!  Right?  Look what He has done for us!  They had lots of excitement and anticipation!  And yet, by the time we get to 2 Chronicles the excitement is gone and there is no longer any anticipation.  So much so, that they were no longer worshiping and no longer seeking God.  What does it really matter right?  They became lazy......and they walked away.

But there was one man, who stood up in front of the Kingdom, and said, "Enough is enough!  It is time to put this place back to the way it was meant to be.  It is time to worship.  It is time to return to a God that we have forsaken.  Look for yourselves.  Look at our history.  It is apparent that our troubles have come because we walked away from God.  It is time to clean house."  And that is exactly what King Hezekiah did.  He not only spoke it, he organized it, and walked it out.  They cleaned out the whole temple.....And this is the spot where I felt God speak to my heart this morning.  And believe me, this is something I struggle with time and time again!

Cleaning out the temple was a physical and literal activity for them.  But for me, reading what they did, it has become a spiritual reminder to clean my own temple....my heart.  What have I allowed to fall by the way side?  What have I stopped doing because I have gotten lazy and wondered to myself what it really matters if I do it anyway?  What have I allowed in that has defiled God's Temple, which is my body?  What have I given up on?

King Hezekiah and his gang deep cleaned the temple in 16 days.  They though out rubbish and junk that had been filling the temple with anything and everything except praise and worship.  They cleaned house and when they got done, they filled the temple up with sacrifices, praise, and worship.

I need to remember:  Don't give up!  Even when the anticipation and excitement is gone.  Even when the activity of who God has called me to be becomes mundane and sometimes even feels like a chore, I must not give up!  I need to keep moving in the direction He is leading and guiding.  And when I do fall, stumble, forget, or even walk away I need to remember to come back and clean house.  I can't let all that junk build up and replace this temple of worship and praise with a needless pile of trash that weighs me down and keeps me from praising!

I love what King Hezekiah says to the Levites in 2 Chronicles 29:10-11:

I have decided to make a covenant with the God of Israel and turn history around so that God will no longer be angry with us.  Children, don't drag your feet in this!  God has chosen you to take your place before him to serve in conducting and leading worship-this is your life work;  make sure you do it and do it well.

Stop dragging your feet!  Don't give up!  This is what we have been created for:  to live a life of worship, holy, pleasing and acceptable to God.  To present yourself as a living sacrifice.  To commune with God and through that communion to allow His light and love to shine out on others.

Galations 6:9:

So let's not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good.  At the right time we will harvest a good crop if we don't give up or quit.