When God leads you into any kind of ministry, you can be sure you’ll run into delays, difficulties, detours, and dead-ends along the way. They are a natural part of life. But you can be ready for them.

For example, if anybody had a right to be discouraged, it was Noah. Do you know how long Noah worked on that ark? It took him 120 years. Could you spend 120 years on a project without one word of encouragement from anyone?

But Noah trusted God. And when he heard God’s warning about the future, Noah believed him, even though there was no sign of a flood. There were likely many days that Noah didn’t feel like going to work, but for 43,830 days, he went to the same place, and he worked. He never gave up.

Don’t give up on your dream, either. Don’t give up on your ministry. Don’t give up on your marriage. Don’t give up on your health. Don’t, don’t, don’t give up. God is in control. You haven’t read the final chapter of your life. God’s already written it, but you haven’t read it yet.

The Bible says, “God is always on the alert, constantly on the lookout for people who are totally committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9 The Message). God is looking for people who are committed to him and his plan so that he can bless them.

Do you want to be one of those people?

Then don’t give up!