No Surrender

Sometimes some random memories of my mom will pop up in my mind. I remember one thing she used to do if she was working on a project and it wasn’t going right or if she was fiddling with something and having trouble with it she would say, “I yield!” in an exasperated tone of voice. It would drive me crazy when she did that and I would just chalk it up as another one of my crazy mother’s annoying habits. But I understand now why my mom would say it.

This past while has been really difficult for me and whether it’s a project I’m working on that’s not going right or my body is aching and cramping or one of the kids just spilled a whole bowl full of cereal and milk on my freshly mopped floor, I find myself often saying those same words, “I yield! That’s it. I give up. I tried my hardest and failed. I’m done.” But I then I try to think back to those times when my mom would say it and I can’t remember her just throwing the project down, giving up and storming away in a huff. Instead, she would try again. She didn’t really surrender even though she was saying she was. She kept at it until she got it right- even when it seemed a hopeless situation.

So maybe that’s what I need to do, too. Maybe it’s really okay if I feel overwhelmed by my life right now. Maybe it’s to be expected that I feel like laying down arms and surrendering to inevitable failure. Maybe it’s okay if I feel hopeless- just as long as I don’t give up. I pray daily for the strength to live and serve another day. Even when I don’t see any possible way that the oncoming day could be good, I still pray that it would be. If I trusted in my own feeble strength then I would have to surrender, but my Jesus has strength enough for me. It’s His strength that will get me through the day. If my Savior can fight the powers of death and darkness and not give up then surely He can carry me along to my own victory.