Don’t Quit Just Speak To It

Don’t Quit Just Speak to it

By

Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.

OPENING: - As Christians we supposedly do not make New Years Resolutions, it is considered taboo, sinful, a lie, false oath, or any other tradition you want to title it, but truth be told we all look to the New Year with a level of expectancy and the desire for a change to happen in the New Year. We will testify and say in the coming year I want to be closer to God than I was last year pray my strength in the Lord that I will go higher and deeper in Jesus name this year. It doesn’t matter how Holy people try to be or how sanctified they act there is a desire that the New Year will bring something new, a new position, a new opportunity, a new house, a new outlook on life.

However, research shows that most New Years Resolutions are broken by the second Friday of the year so much so that the second Friday of January is called quitters day. Because of discouragement, disappointment, lack of enthusiasm, hopelessness, disdain, disgust, frustration people give up and quit.

Today I want to encourage you Don’t Quit Just Speak To It.

PRAYER

SCRIPTURE:- Zechariah 4:6-10 “Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it. Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth”.

IN OUR TEXT: - Zerubbabel is looking at a pile of ruins of what had been a beautiful city and the center of worship for his nation. More than a decade earlier 50,000 exiles returned to Jerusalem with permission from the King of Persia to rebuild the altar and the temple. However, only the altar had been rebuilt and work on the temple had stopped. The leader of the Jewish exiles was Zerubbabel and he was now looking at the rubble and the unfinished rebuilding with a growing sense of discouragement. He had a vision but couldn’t see how provision was going to be made.

When the exiles arrived in Jerusalem they were excited and enthusiastic about what was ahead there was a level of expectancy for something new to take place. God had brought them out of exile back to their home and they felt that they would quickly rebuild the altar and the temple. However, things started to change and there was opposition from outside forces. Not only was there opposition from outside but people within became selfish. They wanted to rebuild their own homes and have their own agendas. They began to put what they wanted in front of the vision at hand. They felt that just because they built the altar that that was good enough and they didn’t want to do what needed to be done. They became busy doing their own thing that they neglected and quit working on and now let lay in ruin the Temple of God. Their desire, enthusiasm, dedication, commitment and love of God began to fade. Finally, weariness, fatigue, discouragement, depression, and disappointment set in. The spirit of mediocrity and complacency began to rule. They quit and refused to do what needed to be done.

Even though they completed one task there was another one that needed to be done. So, after twelve years the task was unfinished, but the people were finished. They simply did not want to work on this anymore. No matter what Zerubbabel did, the people refused to go back to work and it appeared to be a hopeless situation.

The people had quit, the ruins were still the ruins, progress had stopped, the spirit of expectancy was gone, no doubt Zerubbabel began to question God and say Lord is this what you called me to do. He may have even wanted to throw his hands up and say I quit and not go on anymore.

It was into this place of discouragement and disappointment that God sent a prophet with a message for Zerubbabel and for the people and even for us today. It is a powerful word for anyone faced the discouragement, for anyone that has had a vision that has gone unfulfilled, for anyone who is looking at quitting, giving up, throwing up their hands. Anyone who heard the promise of God but has not yet apprehended. It’s the word for the betrayal of someone close to you, the inability to finish a task that seemed so clear in the beginning. It’s a word for a set-back.