Never Give In
Perhaps we want to be brave enough to make a difference. We are devoted to the Lord, serving Him with faithfulness and fear. We depend on His power and might as we stand in Him against the enemies of His kingdom. Yet when the enemies are numerous and strong, and we are alone and weak, we may still wonder:
• Is it worth living for Christ and His plans and purposes?
• Is it worth paying the ultimate price to do and be all that God desires, even to die for the cause of Christ?
• Is it worth it to follow the ways of the Lord, to spend our lives in service to the King of kings?
• Is it worth it to reach the end of our lives believing that we strived to live by His grace and for His glory?
• Will it be worth it all when we see Jesus?
I believe the answer is yes.
There is no greater cause than the cause of Christ. There is no greater purpose than the purposes of God. There is no greater calling than building His Kingdom in the lives of men, women, and children. It is worth living for and it is worth dying for.
I wrote a poem to encourage my beloved friends in the Philippines to pursue God’s purposes. May these words help us all to say with confidence in Him, “I will never give in!
Rise Up, Filipino
By Vince Burke
Rise up, Filipino, and take your place;
set your eyes on Him and run the race.
Make a difference in this world,
make a difference for the Lord.
Forgetting the past, press on to win,
rise up, Filipino, and follow Him.
Rise up, Filipino, and persevere,
don’t be dismayed for our God is here.
Make a difference: Be the one.
Make a difference: Serve the Son.
Stay the course for your conquest is near;
rise up, Filipino, your goal is clear.
Rise up, Filipino, and seize the day;
we know the Shepherd has shown the way.
Make a difference, everyone,
’til your time on earth is done.
Stand strong in the fight for your time has come;
rise up, Filipino, to victory won.
Lord I want to be your servant
and I want to be the one.
Lord I want to be ignited,
set aflame to serve the Son.
Spread the fire of your glory in this land in every place,
May the power of Your story show to everyone
Your grace.
This is an excerpt from Never: 9 Things We Must Never Do by Vince Burke. This book is availble at all OMF Lit and Passages Bookshops and our online store passagesbooks.com for only P350. It’s also available at PCBS and National Bookstore branches.
About the book:
The word "NEVER" is often associated with defeat and discouragement. But what if you can look at the word "NEVER" and feel encouraged and empowered instead?
In Vince Burke's "NEVER", you will discover nine things that the Bible says we should never do when confronted with fear, hurt, trials and unbelief. As Pastor Vince writes, "stay the course, run the race, and endure the pain, come what may.
NEVER is a heartfelt cry to keep on keeping on!