Giving Up

My childhood pastor, a cherished figure in the 20th century Church, used to share this phrase regularly to young leaders:  Never Quit.  Never, ever quit.

I love this phrase.  As a tenacious person, it rings deeply in my spirit.  Even as a kid, I can remember my parents, coaches and friends telling me I never knew when to quit – I’m not quite sure that was always a compliment (ha!).  It is built on a foundation of purpose.  It requires grit.  It inspires discipline; and it forms resilience. 

This phrase is strong, and it should continue to be relayed to everyone, leaders and all, at every station of life.  But it is not the word I have for all of us in this post.  I have a very different word, a set that sounds quite the opposite, in fact.  In this post, I want to encourage you to do this:  Give Up.

Stay with me here!

Most people never achieve what they want, because there are things in their way.  Often, these things that get in our way can actually be removed by our own choices.  We want to get in shape, and most of the time the only thing in our way is a little bit of discipline and time management.  We want better relationships, and usually what stands in our way there is exercising a little bit of extra grace, generosity and consideration.  We want greater opportunities, but we forget to appreciate the current opportunities and do the extra things to get to greater than most people will do.  Attrition, not aptitude, is often the barrier from good to great.  But attrition actually requires us to give up.  We must give up selfishness if we want success.

As a leader, I tend to think my ways are the best ways.  If we’re being honest, most of us in leadership capacities would admit to this embarrassing train of arrogant thought.  But I have learned something over the years, and it is this:  what I want is not always what is best.  I have spent years building teams and witnessing them move ministries way further along than anything I could do on my own.  The more I listen to my teams, the more I experience greater successes with them.  Why?  Because every now and then, I choose to Give Up.  I give up my personal preferences when they don’t match what the team needs.  I give up my subjective agenda when it does not align with what helps the church move further in its unified mission.  I give up my selfish pursuits, when I realize the value of service.  I give up my time, my talent.  I give up my grace and my generosity.  I give these up, because I get more when I do.

The secret here:  sometimes, we actually Get More when we Give Up.

Consider what you can give up in your life and leadership that will result in the greater you are looking for.