Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Never give up or Never give in?
One of my good friends writes "Dan's Blog" on The High Calling. Last week he posted an interesting bit about Churchill's famous but apocryphal "Never give up" speech. Here is a response I posted there:
I am struck by the difference between "Never give in" and "Never give up." These two phrases describe a very different kind of defeat. Giving up is quitting--almost always a bad thing. When I quit football practice in middle school, I gave up. Even though the decision was the right one, giving up on the sport left me feeling deeply ashamed.
Jesus doesn't feel ashamed of the cross because he didn't give up to evil when he accepted crucifixion. He didn't even give in--his death was a sacrifice that led to victory.
This blog and the comment remind me that we should never give up on God's Truth and Goodness. I walk away from some evils (like internet pornography) because I won't give up on Truth--I trust the Truth of God to be victorious in the end whether I assist directly or not in the defeat of that evil. It is someone else's fight. Other evils (like gossip) I fight because I never give up on Truth--I honor God's calling in my life by doing the work he has given me to help spread peace.
HillCountryWriter Category: High Calling Thoughts
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I am struck by the difference between "Never give in" and "Never give up." These two phrases describe a very different kind of defeat. Giving up is quitting--almost always a bad thing. When I quit football practice in middle school, I gave up. Even though the decision was the right one, giving up on the sport left me feeling deeply ashamed.
Jesus doesn't feel ashamed of the cross because he didn't give up to evil when he accepted crucifixion. He didn't even give in--his death was a sacrifice that led to victory.
This blog and the comment remind me that we should never give up on God's Truth and Goodness. I walk away from some evils (like internet pornography) because I won't give up on Truth--I trust the Truth of God to be victorious in the end whether I assist directly or not in the defeat of that evil. It is someone else's fight. Other evils (like gossip) I fight because I never give up on Truth--I honor God's calling in my life by doing the work he has given me to help spread peace.
HillCountryWriter Category: High Calling Thoughts
Technorati Tags: work jobs careers business daily life
