Christianity / Devotionals / Daily Hope with Rick Warren / Maybe It’s Time to Give Up - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - September 10, 2021

Maybe It’s Time to Give Up - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - September 10, 2021

Rick Warren argues that people often try to tackle life's problems on their own, leading to exhaustion and frustration. By recognizing the limits of human strength and surrendering to God, individuals can find true freedom and allow God to carry the load.

rick warrens daily hope new banner may 2022

Maybe It’s Time to Give Up
By Rick Warren

“The battle is not yours, but God's.” 2 Chronicles 20:15 (NLT)

Imagine you’re sitting on a plane that’s about to take off. As the plane goes down the runway, you start flapping your arms. As the speed picks up and the nose lifts in the air, you flap your arms faster and faster. Once in the air, the flight attendant approaches you and says, “What are you doing?”

And you say, “Oh, I'm helping us get off the ground.”

That’s ridiculous, right? But that’s basically what you do when you try to do things only God is equipped to do. Just like you don’t need to hold up a plane, you don’t need to hold up God.

Do you want to know why you're tired all the time? Why you're frustrated? Why you're worn out by life? The reason you're so tired is you're trying to fight battles that belong to God, and you are not God.

“The battle is not yours, but God's” (2 Chronicles 20:15 NLT).

People tend toward independence, and so when you see a problem, you think, “I’ve got to figure this out. It’s up to me!” You assume God’s role, and it wears you out, because you were never meant to carry it in the first place.

You've been running in circles trying to solve problems in your marriage, your body, the economy, your school, the world. You're trying to solve them on your own power. You're trying to fight the battle on your own, and you're getting tired. 

When you finally just give up and come back to God and tell him you’ve made a mess of it, you may think you’ve let him down.

But you haven’t let God down, because you were never holding him up. You don't have God in your hands; he's got you in his hands. If you’ve got God in your hands, it's not God. It's an idol. If you’re trusting in something that you think you can control, then that thing is not God.

God is not disappointed in you, because he's not expecting you to do what only he can do. You don't hold God up. He holds you up.

Let go and surrender to God. Because then he says, “Great! Now we can get something done.”

PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!


Hope Is Born: A Christmas Scripture CollectionYour Gift Brings Hope to the World

Thank you for helping restore broken hearts with the hope of Jesus! 

I am so grateful to be on mission with you! Your gift today is a bold statement that you want to be a light in this world and make an eternal impact for Jesus Christ. 

As thanks for your gift, we’re excited to send you the "Hope Is Born: A Christmas Scripture Collection" Scripture cards. This set of 52 beautifully designed cards brings the joy of the season to life, each sharing a powerful verse celebrating the hope and wonder of Jesus’ birth. 

Request yours below when you give, and thank you for going on mission to reach our world with the love of Jesus!

*The USA IRS code permits you to deduct the amount of your financial gift to Daily Hope that exceeds the fair market value of “current offer” materials you received from Daily Hope.

This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.

SHARE