Hang On
We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. — 2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (NIV)
Is life getting you down? Do you feel like you’re at the end of your rope? Here are seven Biblical principles on how to hang on when you feel like you’re at the end of your rope.
Principle One: I must not forget God loves me.
- Don’t lose heart! – Therefore, since through God’s mercy we have this ministry, we do not lose heart. — 2 Corinthians 4:1 (NIV)
- I am what I am – But by the grace of God I am what I am, … — 1 Corinthians 15:10 (NIV)
- It’s not who we are. It’s whose we are! – Remember our performance does not give us our worth.
- God’s grace gives us the power to start over. – Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. — Romans 8:37 (NIV)
Principle Two: I must keep a clear conscience.
- Renounce secret and shameful ways. — Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. — 2 Corinthians 4:2 (NIV)
- We must have integrity. — The integrity of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity. Proverbs 11:3 (NIV) - We must have character. — For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17 (NIV)
- There are no “secret sins.” God sees and knows everything. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. — 1 John 1:9 (NIV)
Principle Three: It is not about me.
- Do not preach ourselves — For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. — 2 Corinthians 4:5 (NIV)
- Your ego will only take you so far. — Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness before a fall. — Proverbs 16:18 (TLB)
Principle Four: I can’t do it all.
- Power is from God — But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. — 2 Corinthians 4:7 (NIV)
- We must pace ourselves. Life is a journey, not a sprint. — Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. — Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV)
Principle Five: Love, love, love.
- Thanksgiving to overflow — All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. — 2 Corinthians 4:15 (NIV)
Principle Six: Take time to refresh, renew, and revive.
- Do not lose heart — Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. — 2 Corinthians 4:16 (NIV)
Principle Seven: I must keep my eye on the goal.
- Fix our eyes on what is unseen — For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. — 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (NIV)
