Sunday, November 18, 2012

Quitting

Why is it that some of us quit or give up on something so much easier than others? I'm writing about this due to an experience that I had this past weekend.

I was really excited this Saturday because I was going to visit a really well-known village here that I had never seen before. A friend of mine was driving me up there in her car, which made it even nicer, considering I didn't have to sit on a bus or train. At 1:45 pm., I was picked up in the downtown area of Daegu.  The drive was supposed to be about an hour and twenty minutes one way. Well, we arrived very close to our destination in a city known as Andong. Then all of a sudden the IPhone navigation app (Korean one at that), starting giving us the wrong directions.

Nara, my friend, turned the car around a few times, and tried to reset the navigation. Then after maybe fifteen or twenty minutes, she just got back on the road to Daegu.

So your app gives you wrong directions and you just give up? I did found the directions on Apple Maps, but it didn't really make a difference. There were so many ways that we could have found the place without the need of that app. I was willing to step out and ask for directions (real men do that sometimes). She just started throwing a pity party for a few minutes, and I was super nice about it. Then as we arrived back in Daegu, it just hit me - why did I let this person just give up so easily.  Three hours for nothing. I never want to say that I wasted time doing something, but that's what was going through my head. Especially since I know my time is almost over in this country (four-five more months).

Weird thing is I went to visit a friend at the gym where I works and I spotted some dumbbells that were 100 pounds each (crazy idea went off in my head). I looked at my buddy Kevin, and said "I think I can do this." Well, after a few minutes of getting my body adjusted and saying the Lord's Prayer a few times I lifted those dumbbells ten times, thank you very much.

I bring that up, because I spend four days a week working out, and pushing my body to extremes that I never thought were possible as a youth. But I use these workouts as a way to motivate me to become better in other aspects of my life, such as work, church, friends, family, etc. If I don't give up when I feel the need to vomit, as my heart is pumping from working out, then I shouldn't give up on myself, or I shouldn't give up on those I love, or have a great amount of respect for. Likewise, I wouldn't expect them to give up around me as well.

I thought about this in my first class this Monday morning, because I know that I've been that quitter before - whether it was a sport in college or high school, a girlfriend, a friend, a job, or sometimes I want to give up on that long haired red-head friend of mine back home.

Lord knows that I'm a much better person due to the fact that people believe in me. As a wonderful Pastor tells me all that time, there's a ton of unlocked potential that I've yet to make use of.  I'm always amazed that people in my life haven't given up on me due to some of the idiotic, or disrespectful things that I have done.  Then again Love can conquer a lot.

I really didn't intend to type this, but it's better to get out of me than to hold it in. God Bless anyone that reads this.. There are many times when we feel the need to quit or just give up. We may be in the grieving process, or we may just be tired, down, frustrated, depressed, sad, lonely, etc. Somewhere deep down there is something telling you to just keep going - for some of us it is given to us by a divine spirit from above.
As I always say say KEEP GOING. Perseverance is so important for all of us. 

1 comment:

  1. Well spoken, sometimes giving up is the easy way out and when times are tough and they are, the easy way out is well, easy. I'm glad you pondered on this and shared your thoughts. You never know who's listening. You really are a great friend and a great guy. Things are never out of reach if we persevere. Which is an interesting word that I taught my class last year and probably every year. Last though I remember it because this little red head guy, Lord knows he may grow up to be like Teddy but anyway... He looked at me when I said we just have to try and said that means persistent right. Of course he was right. So not exactly the same but very close. So four or five months. Well, make the most of it. I'm sure you have touched a lot of lives there many you may not even know, and you persevered through all those little ones. That takes real strength and I can say that because that's what I do. :)

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