What to Do When You Want to Give up
I decided I wanted to be a teacher because I wanted to make a difference in the world. Like most 22-year-olds, I had high ideals and big expectations. Two months into my teaching career, I was desperate for insight on what to do when you want to give up.
Managing a classroom of teens with special needs turned out to be more challenging than I imagined. Most days, I felt like we were just trying to make it through the day unscathed. I spent most of my time managing behavior, and my creative lesson plans rarely went the way I planned.
By the end of my first year of teaching, I felt overwhelmed and worn out. I needed to regroup. So I boarded a plane with nothing but a heavy internal frame backpack and three weeks of provisions. I needed to get away and reassess my priorities.
In the quiet of the woods – alone with my tent and my thoughts – I reflected on my first year in my dream career. I remember distinctly thinking, “I didn’t sign up for this.”
What to Do When You Want to Give up
Most of us have been here. We spend tens – maybe hundreds – of thousands of dollars and years of our lives pursuing an education. We want to follow our dreams. Three months into the dream career, we wonder if we made the wrong decision.
Some of us commit to ministries and organizations that seem to perfectly fit our gifts and callings. Sadly, once we’re committed, we want nothing more than to turn and run.
Sometimes following Jesus leads us to the same sentiments. We commit to follow him, and we’re excited and hopeful. But then the years roll on, and we realize the high calling of walking with the Lord is leading us up mountains we never expected to climb. (For more on God’s detours, read here.)
I imagine this is how Peter felt the night Jesus was arrested. Peter thought he was signing up for a partnership with the most powerful political ruler who would ever live. Jesus’ power didn’t look the way Peter expected it to look. When reality didn’t match his expectations, Peter started to question everything. He denied he even knew Jesus three times.
“I Didn’t Sign up for This”
Motherhood can be a bit like this. You commit to the idea of a family. When the tiny hooded sleepers with teddy bear ears are lined up in the closet, the idea of children looks like the best thing ever.
Five months later, after resigning from your prestigious and fulfilling career, you have not slept for more than 30 straight minutes in months. You often go days without washing your hair. And all you do is swaddle and change the same little baby 45 times a day. You mumble it a thousand times in your head: I didn’t sign up for this.
What do we do when our realities fail to match the expectations we cleverly crafted in our minds? Here are several suggestions:
1. Remain Unoffended
Our greatest downfalls in life aren’t usually the result of stumbling blocks in our paths. Instead, our reactions to the stumbling blocks lead us to fall. Life doesn’t go as planned, and we become offended because God’s plans don’t match ours.
Friend, can you keep your heart soft when God doesn’t show up and save the day?
Can you trust God when his plans don’t match yours?
Learn to keep a soft heart, and you will avoid taking offense when life is disappointing.
2. Remember This: The Story You See in Front of You Is Not Finished Just Yet
God is on the move in the middle of your struggle. You didn’t sign up for this. But God is going to use this to transform something in your life that will be beautiful when he is done. Your story isn’t finished just yet. Keep doing the next thing, and trust him to bring this to completion.
3. Keep Practicing
Some of the greatest setbacks come when we face rejection. We hear only the word “no.” Often, “no” doesn’t mean “never.” It means, “not yet.” Don’t give up because this calling is hard. Don’t give up because you’re not getting it right. Keep trying. Keep putting one foot in front of the other. Some of the greatest transformation happens in the early stages of any process.
4. Testify to God’s Goodness, Even Here
It’s easy to give thanks when we’re strolling along sandy beaches with gentle waves caressing our feet. It’s not quite so easy to testify to God’s goodness when the storm rages.
How can you testify to God’s goodness today?
Give God glory when life is hard, and you will move ahead in your battle against discouragement.
A Final Insight on What to Do When You Want to Give up:
After my summer of backpacking, I eventually returned to my classroom. I spent close to a decade teaching the students I grew to dearly love. There were hills and valleys along the journey. Even though it wasn’t what I imagined, God used it in mighty ways. Some of the most powerful kingdom-work took place precisely because it was not what I signed up for.
Don’t lose heart in your own valley. God is working in deep and unseen ways – even here.
Don’t lose heart in your own valley. God is working in deep and unseen ways, even here. #trustingGod #dontgiveup #Godmoves #encounteringGod Click To TweetA Free Devotional for When You Feel Defeated:
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