Faith and Quitting, NOT

September 4, 2025 Martha Rodman1 Comment

Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be complete, not lacking anything. James 1: 4 NIV.

True confession time: I’ve been struggling to allow perseverance to finish its work. My mind wanders. My body offers distractions through its aging aches and pains. My spirit is being assaulted by my flesh. Am I alone? I don’t think so.

So what are some of the reasons we might want to quit? One of the first reasons, is forgetting why we are running our race. We lose sight of our first love and allow the things of this world to capture our attention. We begin to listen to the little voice inside our head: “why bother? You might look around and see others who stopped running their race, or are slowing down. We forget we aren’t alone in our race. “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.”

For me, life has been challenging. Losing my sister and two friends after her, has brought fresh grief into my life. It has also triggered grief for others I miss. Being honest about its affect on my life, has helped me carry its effects easier. When I am challenged with wanting to quit (i.e. not persevere), I have learned to look up and around my life. Understanding that I am processing grief has enabled me to give myself more grace and mercy. My soul is weary, my body tired. The weight of responsibilities seem heavier than ever. So, what can I/we do when these struggles come? Talk to the Lord like we are encouraged in Psalm 119:28. My soul is weary with sorrow, strengthen me according to your word. Just talking to the Lord about my feelings about my grief has helped a lot. Just this week, He sent offers of help I needed to help lift my load! I took them up on it! Remember the scripture: “You have not because you ask not”? James 4:2.

We also have Satan and his determination to thwart God’s plans. He tries to send what I like to call his “discouraging worms” to wiggle their way into our thoughts. If we recognize them quickly, we can capture them before they grow big enough to affect our faith. If discouraging worms like fear, unbelief, doubt are plaguing you, stop them!

“The other night, as I was scrolling FB, I stopped to listen to a fellow believer share a word from the Lord. I am sorry, I don’t remember his name, but I remember the word. It was a warning concerning the enemy’s tactic against the body of Christ. It was the same thing God had shared with me, a few weeks before. The word concerned Satan’s attacks against the “second tier” leadership in the church. Elders, staff, associate pastors, small group leaders are all being hit with discouragement. This includes dealing with disappointments, disheartening events and people to decide to step away from their posts. The Holy Spirit had me praying against this weeks ago!

I don’t care where you fit in the Body of Christ. You are wanted and needed to stand in your place. Do not be cheated out of the blessings that come from serving. Do not be cheated out of the blessing of being a pillar in the house of the Lord. Not letting perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything hinders the whole body of Christ. Please keep walking, running or standing in your place. You do not know how valuable you are. Do not let the enemy win. When we all get to heaven, we aren’t going to remember the hard and difficult places, we will simply celebrate Jesus. Someone once told me the tears that will be wiped away, are possibly the tears of regret for what we didn’t do for the Kingdom.

Take a deep breath and a break if you need to. Talk to your friends or pastors before you decided to quit something. Ask the Lord for His guidance and trust His wisdom. I know there are times to start and stop something, but there is a right way and a wrong way to do it. Make sure you do it the right way, if you need to.

Remember: Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. James 1:12

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season, we will reap, if we do not give up. Galations 6:9.

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. Romans 5:3-5.

My friends, here in the west we have it easy. Our believers in other areas of the world are suffering for Christ’s sake. They are persevering through the toughest battles and are victorious. Let us pray for them and toughen up ourselves. Eternity will be worth it.

Father, I ask you to help us choose to persevere in every area we are tempted to quit. Where your children have thought, “why bother?” “What’s the use?” help them push through and trust you for the strength they need. You understand about wanting to quit, but you didn’t, for our sake.. Thank you, In Jesus’ Name, amen.

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Faith and Dealing with Doubts

June 12, 2025June 12, 2025 Martha RodmanLeave a comment

Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Luke 24:38 ESV.

Doubts: a feeling of uncertainty or lack of conviction. Have you ever faced a sneak attack, from the enemy, of doubt? I faced such an assault last week.

This is a very transparent story I am sharing with you. A couple of weeks ago, I felt the Holy Spirit nudging me to write a letter. It wasn’t an easy letter to write, so I sought Him for the wording. The day I wrote the letter, I actually woke up with, what I felt was His wording for the letter. This came with such peace, that I knew I had heard from Him on the matter.

All went well for the next few days. Then, one night as I was falling asleep, a very subtle feeling of unease crept in. I dismissed it, and went on with my life. But slowly but surely the unease led to insecurity which led to condemnation. The condemnation became so strong that I began to doubt anything and everything else I was doing. Along with the doubt, insecurity came fear.

The “feeling” was awful. I went back to the Lord, apologizing and repenting if I had misunderstood His assignment. I asked Him to be merciful and gracious to the person I wrote to. Finally, I shared the letter with someone. She knew the person I wrote to. She said, “it’s a good letter”. That helped.

As I went back to the Lord, I heard Him whisper: “doubt”. No wonder I was struggling. Doubt is an insidious tool. It subtly caused me to turn my eyes away from the Lord. Focusing on myself is never a good thing. I truly was like James 1:6 says, but let him ask in faith, or the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. My emotions had me all over the place.

When the Holy Spirit whispered the word “doubt”, peace came and it was like a light turned on! I knew I was the victim of a sneak attack by the enemy. What began with the letter, tried to spread to every ministry area in my life. It tried to undermine my calling and my purpose. Doubt and insecurity attempted to steal my confidence in the Lord. They wanted me to focus on myself. This shift in focus distracted me from God’s ability.

My friends, I felt confident that the letter I wrote, written in love, was an act of obedience. Only God knows what the outcome will be. Part of the letter challenged the works of darkness. I knew of the possible backlash, but was still unprepared for how it came. My friends, obedience isn’t always easy. We do have an enemy that does not fight fair. He seeks any entry he can find. He found an area of weakness in my life. I am so grateful for the Holy Spirit and His words of life and truth. The peace of God came immediately.

In Mark 9, we find the story of a father bringing his son to Jesus for help. His father asked “if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us. And Jesus said to him, “if you can! All things are possible for one who believes. Immediately, the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!”. (Mark 9: 22-24. ESV.) The Lord has gone on to show me, what I started in faith, I needed to continue in faith. Praying and believing the words I wrote, spoken in faith and love, would produce the good fruit God intended. When doubt entered in, I stopped praying for the situation. It began to be about me. I’ve gone back to praying in faith, that He is moving. I’m praying the truth will set free and God’s will, will be done.

We must continue to grow in our faith. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17. My friends, don’t let doubt and unbelief hinder you from obedience. It is not worth it.

Father, I thank you for your victory. I am humbled by your gracious Holy Spirit who speaks words of life to us. Please teach us how to resist doubt and unbelief by learning Your Word and Your Ways.

Faith and Application

February 6, 2025 Martha RodmanLeave a comment

Listen to the words of the wise; apply your heart to instruction. For it is good to keep these sayings in your heart and always ready on your lips. I am teaching you today—yes, you so you will trust in the Lord. Proverbs 22:17-19. NLT.

I have been having an ongoing conversation with the Lord. We have discussed why so many in their later season of life experience so many challenges. It seems the advertised “golden” years are not as golden as the commercials would like to portray! People hear about the joys of retirement with traveling, golfing, or cruising. However, many seniors face unexpected physical diagnoses. These diagnoses can limit their mobility and interactions. Last year I got to experience physical therapy for the first time because of a knee condition. Now both knees are complaining and I need to courage up to tackle a flight of stairs! These are fairly common complaints for those of us in our 70’s.

There is also the hovering concern or specter of dementia! Oh, I forgot a word or date. Could this be an early sign of dementia or Alzheimer’s? So what are we to do? Let fear ruin our lives? That definitely is not the answer! So I prayed and talked with the Lord about navigating these older years. I asked Him why things seem to be so hard. He shared a simple insight. He said it is time to apply all the lessons about Him we have already learned. Every lesson about His trustworthiness and His faithfulness, we are to put into practice. It is a time to lean ever more upon Him and what His Word has to say in every situation.

Often we can move through life with our heads full of knowledge about God and His ways. It is when we face challenges to actually apply what we know , is when we find out how much faith we truly have. Jesus told us that in this world we would suffer tribulations. James is very clear on this as well. Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know when your faith is tested, endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing. James 1: 2-4. My senior friends, if your faith is being tested, it is a good thing. It is not easy, but He will work it out for your good. It will also benefit others. This is not just for senior friends, but for all of God’s children.

He also reminded me. These years are our last opportunity to show what it means to be a believer in Him. Whether or not we like it, people are watching you. Your family, friends and acquaintances really need us to model what it means to be a believer during trying times. When my sister was first diagnosed with lymphoma, God led me to Philippians 4:6-7. Very simple and familiar scriptures, but they became very real to me. Don’t worry about anything, instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. I keep applying these lessons through her breast cancer journey and now her heart and kidney concerns. The don’t worry part is challenging, but I am getting better at it!

My friends, it is not God’s plan that we simply spout platitudes about His goodness, but we must believe it. When faced with the trials of our faith, we must know that 2 Peter 1:3 is true. By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. There is no disqualifying circumstance to this verse. He has given us everything we need for living a godly life, the choice is “do we believe it?”. Oh my friends, the lessons you are learning today will benefit you greatly. They will help you, no matter what you face tomorrow. Many times it is the small things that help us endure. I remember singing (very croakedly) “this is the day the Lord has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it), during the first few weeks after my husband’s stroke. It came from deep within my spirit from the earlier lessons He taught me. This simple scripture helped me get through those tough days.

So no matter what season of life, learn to apply what you know. If you need more help in a matter, ask Him for it–or a good friend. Remember, He is our teacher. What a blessing it brings to Him, when we apply what we know!

Father, I thank you for teaching us how to apply Your Word to every circumstance we find ourselves in. I thank you we don’t have to worry about our future, because you are already in it. Prepare us for our future, but helping us learn to walk with you today. Help us truly “apply our heart to your instruction”. In Jesus’s Name, amen.

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Faith and Hope Less

January 30, 2025 Martha RodmanLeave a comment

I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15: 13 NLT.

I had the chance to talk with another widow this week. Her husband and mother passed very close together about four years ago. She is a firm believer. She wasn’t questioning God’s goodness. Instead, she was seeking to learn how to walk through these sometimes paralyzing struggles that grief can often bring. Somehow during the conversation, someone used the word “hopeless.” As we talked, I thought about “hope less.” versus hopeless. Had my hope level dropped amid so many challenges?

Think about a thermometer. When we take temperatures for fevers, we want the numbers to go down. Can you see it now? A hope thermometer? Is your hope increasing or decreasing? I had to admit that in some areas my hope is less than it used to be. It was a reality check, but in a good way. Life hasn’t been easy for many lately. Those close to me have been dealing with very hard things. I talked with a lady yesterday at church. She had been a wonderful life group leader. She shared she had to step down, because her husband was diagnosed with early stages of Alzheimer’s. Her mom had passed away from the same disease, so she knows sort of what lies ahead.

She told me, I still believe in our God who heals, and am trusting Him for our future. When life sends us these curves, it is hard. Many older saints are facing even more difficult trials than ever before. I asked the Lord about it, and He said, “it’s time to apply everything we’ve learned in the past”. It is not a time to give up and lose hope or heart. It is a time to lean even harder on Him and His character. This last season of our life gives us the opportunity to really live as an example of the believer. Not easy, but it must be doable!

I realized I had actually lost some hope (hope less). I began to pray and ask Him to help me. Proverbs 13:12, is very clear: hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. NLT. When things are “deferred” put off, delayed or even suspended we can become discouraged. Little children can fuss and fume over short delays, but as we mature we can endure it a bit better. There comes a time when we have to admit, “Lord, I think my heart is sick”. You may be trusting Him for healing, finances, a relationship fix etc. But it hasn’t happened yet. So what do we do? Grow sicker and sicker? No, my friend. We need to go back to the Lord. I wanted my husband to miraculously recover from his heart attack and stroke. When we began to see improvement, we were all so excited. But, after caring, trusting, praying and loving him, two and half years later he joined Jesus.

So now what? I admitted my heart was sick. I had many conversations with Him, sharing my feelings and disappointments. Some I wrote, some were simply heart felt prayers. I had learned enough about Him I did not stop until peace came. The scripture in Romans 15:13 tells us He is the God of ALL hope. So it makes sense to go back to the source and ask Him to restore your hope. Paul was praying for the Roman church, that the God, the source of hope, would fill them completely with joy and peace. He wanted them to experience the fullness of the Good News. This is God’s wish for us, that we will be filled completely with joy and peace. I admit, I am still working on that!

Hope can be a bit elusive at times, which is why we find this exhortation in Hebrews 10:23. Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Isn’t this the crux of the matter? Do we believe He is trustworthy? When hope wanes, we often take our eyes off Him and onto the immensity of the situation. Our enemy wants us to blame God, get us to believe “if He really cared…” (you fill in the blank!) Paul told Timothy, This is why we work hard and continue to struggle, for our hope is in the living God, who is the Savior of all people and particularly of believers. 1 Timothy 4:10. I want to remind you and me today that He has already proven His loving care. Do whatever you have to do to focus on the Living Loving God, then your hope will rise.

Psalm 119:74 states: May all who fear you find in me a cause for joy, for I have put my hope in your word. If you lose hope, many around you will too. But if you stand strong in God’s Word, you will also strengthen those around you. Lately, when I turn on either my Alexa or Spotify worship, there are so many songs about warfare and struggles. It made me wonder if God is causing His artists to write and produce such songs. We must need them. I found my faith rising as I listened to these encouraging sounds. If you are not a musician like me, we can forget about adding it to our warfare weaponry. But when I do, it is so refreshing.

I want to remind us again that in this world we are going to have trials and tribulations. We can either become hope less, or grow in our hope.

Not just regular hope, but confident hope. Hope that makes us not ashamed or afraid. Do I feel disappointed in myself that my hope thermometer went down? Of course, I felt disappointed. However, I am so grateful for the Holy Spirit. He helped me get back on the right path. Remember Romans 5:4-6. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and dies for us sinners.

Father, I thank you for showing us that even though we may lose some hope, we don’t have to become hopeless. You teach us to not lose hope. We can hold on and not become hopeless. Help us to grow in Your hope, a hope that encourages us to trust You no matter our journey. You are the source of all Hope and we can depend on you. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

Photo by Polina Tankilevitch on Pexels.com

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Faith and Great Reminders

October 19, 2023October 19, 2023 Martha RodmanLeave a comment

Always give thanks to God the Father for everything. Ephesians 5:20; Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. I Thessalonians 5:18.

This morning my soon to be 94-year-old sister, Betty called me. She has been a widow for many years and suffers from different bodily complaints as an older saint. But she still is amazing! Betty called to remind me that Jesus is faithful and we should never forget, in our own suffering situations, what our dear Savior went through for us. She is always so encouraging and if you ask her how she is, her usual reply is: “I am thankful”. It was a great reminder.

It just so happened that after I finished my conversation with her, I read Matthew 27, the story of Jesus’ Crucifixion. What a horrible death he endured for us. To read about the mocking, jeering and the nailing made me feel so very humbled and small. The interesting thing to me is that Betty’s own daughter, my niece, has been enduring a horrific battle with her health. She had a knee replacement about May or so, and during a followup appointment, the doctor noticed she was very yellow. Subsequent tests revealed she has pancreatic cancer. But during this medical journey, the doctors missed gall bladder issues, so hers ruptured. They put in drains and she kept getting infections…in an out of the hospital. She was too weak to have the chemo at times. Every issue has been painful and difficult, but she, like her mother, finds things to be grateful about. I don’t want to keep sharing all the ugly bits about this journey, but nothing about it has been easy. She is now on TPN. It is a nutrition program taken via her blood vessels. We are praying she will be strong enough in a few weeks for the surgeon to remove what is left of her gallbladder, take out as much of her pancreatic tumor as possible and correct a fistula that has developed. Our family is standing with her. We are still trusting that God is moving and listening to our prayers. Anne is the kindness, most wonderful woman you could every meet, and yet she is dealing with these ongoing struggles with a rest and trust in her Savior.

About the same time, Anne’s pancreatic cancer was discovered, my sister Mary was diagnosed with cancer as well. She has had 12 chemo treatments and 1 infusion treatment. Tomorrow she has surgery to remove the rest of her tumor and get some lymph nodes checked. Then she has about another year of infusions to complete her journey. It has not been easy, but compared to what Anne is dealing with, it has been a walk in the park! But neither of these family members and their suffering has ever come close to what Jesus went through for us.

After they finished nailing him to the cross and were waiting for him to die, they whiled away the time by throwing dice for his clothes. Above his head they had posted the criminal charge against him: THIS IS JESUS,THE KING OF’s THE JEWS. (Matthew 27:35-36 MSG). People passing along the road jeered, shaking their heads in mock lament. You bragged that you could tear down the Temple and then rebuild it in three days–so show us your stuff! Save yourself! If you’re really God’s Son, come down from that cross!” The high priests, along with the religion scholars and leaders were right their mixing it up with the rest of them, having a great time poking fun at him; He saved others—He can’t save himself. But, of course, that wasn’t the worse of it, I believe. Eli, Eli sambachthani…which means, ‘My God, my God, what have you abandoned me?” This separation from the Father and bearing our sins must have been excruciating for him. He suffered physical pain, but also emotional and spiritual pain. The amazing thing, He was able, amid his own pain, to pray for us as Luke 23:34 declares: then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing”. Oh my friends, as my sister reminded me, we too often forget the cost and suffering our Savior actually went through for us. Can we, amid our struggles simply be grateful we have a Savior?

No matter what you are going through or facing, please know you are not alone. Our wonderful heavenly Father is with you, helping and working on your behalf. I am going to keep praying for Anne, that she will get on an easier path, but until then I can only trust our Savior with her. Right now, I don’t have time nor the energy to ask the Lord for the “whys” of Anne’s situation. I simply press on believing that He that has begun a good work will complete it, that is why he suffered and died for us.

Let us not forget to be grateful and thankful for Him in our life. It is challenging to hear of the obstacles and challenges that keep coming to Anne. But instead of growing weary in fighting the fight with her, we are praying even more. Don’t shy away from any fight you are in, spiritually speaking. Stay in it. Keep on trusting, releasing your faith and waiting for Him to show up. He will. Pray with me for Anne, please, our family appreciates it!

Let’s not let the work Jesus did and suffered for be in vain. Struggles and difficulties will be had in this life, but it is so much easier to walk and work them through with Him than without, amen? What do you really think about during communion? It is the great reminder that was instituted to help us remember what price was paid for our salvation.

Father, I thank you for loving us, caring for us and being patient when we forget the significant cost you spent for us. Forgive us for taking it so lightly and complaining about our lives. Help us press on and run the individual race you have called each of us to run, this day, In Jesus’ Name, amen.

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Faith and the Middle

May 25, 2017May 25, 2017 Martha RodmanLeave a comment

My bathroom project continues. Everything old is out, except for the toilet. The old vanity is sitting in my bedroom. The new tub is set in its new position, but of course not quite lining up as we thought. I now have to do new flooring, because the old floor doesn’t match the new tub’s position. I walked in there yesterday and prayed, “Lord, I thank you for having solutions for the known and unknown problems.” Part of me just wants it done. I don’t want to have to make more decisions. However, most of the decisions are having to be made by my friend who is doing the work. Some of the problems I see as major, he sees as minor. We are obviously too far to quit. I know and have faith that we will finish it. It is going to be different already than I imagined, but I trust it will be a wonderful blessed room. We need to keep going, not quit in the middle! Continue reading “Faith and the Middle” →

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Faith To Surrender

April 23, 2017January 4, 2018 Martha Rodman2 Comments

Early Sunday morning as I was driving to our Easter service, I was thinking about the faith it takes to surrender to the Lord and His will for our lives. I realized we would not be celebrating Easter if Jesus had not surrendered to His Father’s will of the death on the cross. He is our wonderful example.

The faith that is involved in surrendering to His will is not easy. Hebrews 12:2b says Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. (NLT) or the NKJV who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus thought about what he was going to have to endure. I always wonder how he went from the last meal with his disciples, where he served them: lovingly washing their feet sharing what we now call communion with them–and also knowing what was coming as he released Judas to his mission of betrayal.

Then they made the trip to the Garden of Gethsemane.

Continue reading “Faith To Surrender” →