Never Give Up

The last week was emotionally charged.

Marquis Sutton, senior at Edison, was fatally shot and past away on Monday, September 24th.  Here we are, trying to get ready to play football, coming off a win at Bullard, and suddenly, the game takes a serious backseat.

I started to recap the season so far for the Golden Eagles Varsity team, it has been a season like no other so far.  The team started off the year with a great summer workout, with hopes and expectations held high.  Then, on the Wednesday before the first game, we lose our tight end for the season.  Not only did he break his ankle, he did it at Wednesday practice.  Not many weeks after, we lose another player, same injury, also at practice.  So now, the team has witness two players receive year ending injuries.  We then get a rest with the bye week and come back strong against Bullard with a win.  This is short lived because of the death of Marquis before the game.

I don't believe in coincidences, and I made sure to convey it with this weeks message.

"We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not detroyed;" - 2 Corinthians 4:7-8

Lets take the passage in four segments..

First, afflicted but not crushed.  The word afflicted means bodily pain, trouble or pressure.  So this life, there will be bodily pain and there will be trouble and pressure, but it won't crush us.  A better way to look at this is by saying "Pressure will not defeat us".  Lets take an example of a boxer.  he gets in the ring and takes a pounding for 12 rounds and endures the pain which goes along with it.  He doesn't stop when he feels the pain, he pushes through it.  If he did stop, he wouldn't be much of a boxer.

Second, perplexed or confused but not driven to despair or hopelessness.  Life will throw a bunch of stuff at you.  Sometimes you wont know what to do, but if you give those cares to God, you'll always have hope.  So confusion will not discourage us.

Third, we will be persecuted but never abandoned by God.  If you put your faith in God and ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior, never will He forsake you.  Jesus will always be with you.  "Never will I leave you, Never will I forsake you" - Hebrews 13:5.  Go back to our example of the fighter.  The opposition doesn't deter him from continuing his battle.  He goes into the fight knowing God is with him. 

Lastly, there will be time where you are struck down.  There will be times in your life when it feels like you can't go on, times where you just don't know how you are going to get through.  When these times occur, fully rest in the Lord and know that he is God. "Be still and know that I am God" - Psalm 46:10.

I've purposely used the example of the fighter, but you can easily see how any of life's examples can be substituted.  

Lets look at football...

1. The pressure of the game will not defeat us
2. Confusion of the outcomes will not discourage us
3. The opposition will not deter us
4. Hard hits will not destroy us

Remember, man's extremity is God's opportunity.  When we can't, God can.

"I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength" - Phil 4:13