The Summer of Brave #5 – A Brave Ending: Don’t Ever Quit
“What matters most right now is how I choose to respond to the challenges before me.
Will I lie down or will I fight?”
In the end, where will your bravery get you?
In every brave life, there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. Each is a season all to its own, and each must end before a new season can begin.
When you go on a road trip (and some of us are starting to venture a bit further even in a pandemic), you are happy to make stops along the way because you know, ultimately, you have a final destination mapped out in advance.
In life though, we can have an unplanned stop and start to panic to the point of paralysis because we don’t understand the landscape or the reason we are stuck.
These stops can become the broken ‘middle’ in our journey and the decisions we make in these places of inertia can make or break us.
Every woman ever created was designed for a purpose and so were you. Every woman ever created was appointed and anointed with birthright gifts to do great work. And so were you. Every woman ever created had seeded within her enough Spirt-powered momentum to see her to her final destination. And so do you.
Now is not the time to quit.
Here are three things you need to get you to your brave ending:
YOU NEED A CLEAR FOCUS
In a culture asking you to be all things to all people, it’s no wonder you can lose your way but also lose your ability to distinguish between your strong ‘yes’ and your strong ‘no.
Take these moments in the middle as an opportunity to explore your values and priorities.
Discover your unique giftedness and abilities.
Invest in your strengths.
Embrace your unique call and focus on that. Quit comparing yourself to everyone else.
YOU NEED A COURAGEOUS FIGHT
When you decide to live by the courage of your convictions even in and especially in a world that seems out of control, it will cost you.
Yet you will be rewarded by feeling more alive than ever if you bravely begin to use your voice and take a stand for things that really matter.
Do you know what you are prepared to live and die for?
Fight for your identity
Fight for your Values
Fight for your vision
YOU NEED A CONFIDENT FINISH
The most important truth to propel you to the finish line
is accepting there is no way you can get there on your own.
Get to your strong finish with godly friends. Choose well. Choose wisely. Find friends whose values align with yours and have strong faith forged through fire. They know how to persevere and become a crucible for you in your hardest moments.
Get to your strong finish with God. The power of the Holy Spirit is enough to enfold you in His slipstream and carry you in the times when you lose your strength and your way.
Philippians 4:13 reminds us all that: “I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.”
When you want to quit, you’re asking Jesus to quit.
Stay the path, friend. Don’t ever quit. Ever. You never have to go it alone. Your broken middle is just a season and there is more than you can imagine on the other side of your fear and momentary trials. Jesus will be with you to help you bring your brave home. You have a brave ending ahead of you. I beg you, take courage.
I believe in you!
Cathie