I don’t see myself as a quitter, but I do have an inclination to quit things. I’m not talking about quitting the negative things. The negative things—well, they need to go by the wayside. It’s the positive things that I don’t want to quit. Although . . . there are times when I subject myself to commitment overload, which leaves me worn out and frazzled. That’s when I need to evaluate my commitments and give something up for the sake of my health and sanity. But, there are many good things I don’t want to quit.

* God is at the top of this list. Unfortunately, there are times when I shove Him aside. Most of the time it’s not an intentional shove, just a slip of the brain. In the busyness of the day, I don’t always spend time communicating with Him as I should. On the flip side, there are times when I get mad because something doesn’t go the way I envision. Then, I start blaming God for not working things out the way I THINK they should work out. It’s in those times I feel like quitting God. Fortunately, He is patient and He knows my true heart. In His loving and gentle way He soothes my anger and ministers to that wounded area. Additionally, He reminds me that my job is obedience, and He’s in charge of the outcome. In the end, I always come running back to the security of my Father’s arms.

* My husband is in the second spot. While we’ve had our bumps along the way, there’s no one else I’d rather spend my life with. He’s my best friend.

* My kids are in this mix too. I don’t want to quit on them either. Sometimes though, the overwhelming responsibility of motherhood makes me want to run for the hills.

* Then there’s my career. Teaching is a profession where I never—and I mean I NEVER saw myself. But, God clearly led me to this vocation, and I don’t want to walk away until He says its time to change course. However, in each school I’ve worked, there have been a few students who try every ounce of patience and step on every last nerve. And if I’m honest, some days I want to throw my hands up in surrender (today was one of those days). But if I give up on these kids, then I’ve given up on someone God loves.

* Many other relationships and tasks are on this list. Some I feel very strongly about. Some cause me stress. And some, I feel unqualified to conquer. This blog hits all three of those points. I’ve mentally quit the writing process more times than I can count. However, I seem to have a boomerang relationship with it and many other items on the list. Every time I quit, I always return.

* What hasn’t made this list? Sadly, the many items I’ve quit before I started them.

Yes, I often find myself engulfed in a war between marching forward and quitting. Truthfully, there are days when I’d rather crawl in a cave and hibernate than fulfill my commitments. But following through is not only an act of obedience; it is also a character reference. I don’t want to be known as someone people can’t count on to finish tasks. I want to be known as a faithful servant of God who completes the tasks she’s assigned.

Recently I was in the midst of a quit or not quit battle when Nicki Koziarz’s book, 5 Habits of a Woman Who Doesn’t Quit, landed in my mailbox. This is one of those books that as I read, I kept nodding my head in agreement, because I could identify with many of the statements.

In her book, Nicki candidly talks about her own struggle with quitting. She also encourages the reader to press on by adopting 5 habits she discovered while reading the book of Ruth.

Ruth was a woman of commitment. In spite of her circumstances, and her mother-in-law’s initial attitude, she remained faithful. The result of her faithfulness? She impacted generations to come.

Friends, I don’t know where you are with this topic. Maybe you too struggle with following through on commitments. Maybe you quit before you ever begin. Maybe there are days when you want to throw your hands up in surrender OR crawl in a cave and hibernate from the world and its demands.

If you struggle with fulfilling commitments, I encourage you to grab a copy of Nicki’s book and learn how to apply the 5 Habits of a Woman Who Doesn’t Quit. Who knows how many generations we will impact . . . all because we became women didn’t quit.

All images are compliments of Nicki Koziarz and the #5HabitsBook team.