When You Feel Like Giving Up

Scripture:

And when they opposed and reviled him, he shook out his garments and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads! I am innocent. From now on I will go to the Gentiles.” And he left there and went to the house of a man named Titius Justus, a worshiper of God. His house was next door to the synagogue. Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with his entire household. And many of the Corinthians hearing Paul believed and were baptized. – Acts 18:6–8

Think:

Sometimes you are tired of trying.

Tired of choosing your words carefully. Tired of being dismissed. Tired of praying for someone who seems no closer to Jesus than when you began. You love them, but if you are honest, you are irritated, too. You find yourself thinking, Fine. I have told you. I cannot make you listen.

Perhaps Paul felt something of that as he shook out his clothes and left the synagogue. Luke does not name his emotions, but the scene is forceful. He had returned Sabbath after Sabbath, reasoning with them and testifying that Jesus was the Messiah. They responded with opposition and insults. Finally, he declared that he had fulfilled his responsibility and walked out.

But he kept preaching. Next door, in the house of Titius Justus, Paul continued offering people Jesus.

Then Luke tells us that Crispus, the leader of the very synagogue Paul had left, believed in the Lord—with his entire household.

Crispus likely had heard Paul teach. Perhaps he had resisted the message himself. Perhaps he had stood quietly while others opposed it. We are not told. But whatever his earlier response had been, he came to believe. His whole household believed with him. And many more Corinthians heard, believed, and were baptized.

Imagine what that meant to Paul. The synagogue leader now shared his faith. A whole household belonged to Jesus. People in Corinth were stepping into baptism because they had received the message others had refused.

When you are weary, it is easy to let one painful response fill your entire field of vision. You remember the insult. You replay the argument. You begin to wonder whether all those prayers and conversations have mattered.

But the response you see today may not be the response someone gives Jesus forever.

Paul knew that from his own life. He had once opposed the Savior he now preached.

So bring God your weariness—and the irritation you wish you did not feel. Ask Him to keep hurt from hardening into resentment. You may need to step back from an argument, as Paul stepped away from the synagogue. You can still remain faithful, still pray, still love, still speak when an opportunity comes.

There was more to Corinth’s story than Paul could have seen as he walked out that door. There may be more to yours than you can see today.

Application:

Tell God where you feel tired of trying and whom you have begun to resent. Ask Him for a tender heart and one faithful next step, even while you wait for what you cannot yet see.

Prayer:

Jesus, I am tired, and sometimes my hurt comes out as irritation. Keep my heart tender. Help me keep loving and remain faithful while You work in ways I cannot see. Amen.