I was speaking with a dear soul recently who shared with me the past season of their life. Their desire to do good for others was clear but what was also clear was that this individual had become completely exhausted, both mentally and physically. They had found themselves at a point of questioning why they were even bothering to do the good they were doing.

Can you relate to that? Have you ever felt depleted after helping the people in your life? Or perhaps a hard project at work or school had you completely exhausted. Work, family, friends, life… can make any one of us tired at some point.

In his letter to the Galatians, the Apostle Paul writes,

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9)

Paul was writing to encourage them in the good work they were doing because he knew that they too would become tired. He encourages them, and us, to persevere in doing good things. But we are not called to do it alone and interestingly we are not called to do it for people. If you look at the verse just above, it says that “whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life”. (vs 8)

The good work we do is to please the spirit, not people, and as a result of doing good we will reap a reward.

If you are a gardener you know how it goes. You work hard to prepare the beds and to plant the seeds (and whatever else you gardeners do), and then you wait (which can also be tiring), and sometimes you wait for a while before you actually see the fruits of your labour.

Paul reminds us that there will be a harvest for those who do not give up.

So, don’t give up on doing the right thing to please the spirit.

Don’t give up on loving the difficult people in your life.

Don’t give up praying to a God that listens.

Don’t give up on living godly lives and helping those around you.

Scripture tell us if we don’t give up, there will be a reward for us. We may see that reward this side of heaven or not, regardless we should continue to do the right thing.

All that to say, your work matters. What you do matters. There is value to how you live and love others.

So today consider the good that you have done and can continue to do for others. How can you continue to persevere in living a godly life?