In 1813 Captain James Lawrence, the Commander of the U.S. Chesapeake, exclaimed “Don’t give up the ship!”

During the War of 1812, James Lawrence was promoted to captain and was given command of the Chesapeake at Boston. On his way out of Boston harbor he fought the British frigate Shannon. In the battle, the captain was mortally wounded. As he was being carried from the deck words, he shouted, “Tell the men to fire faster and not to give up the ship.” That phrase, “Don’t give up the ship!”, became the Americans’ battle cry.

Giving up sounds good when life gets tough. Athletes know this. Getting outscored early in the game, they can think, “What’s the use. We’re gonna get slaughtered!” Or a long-distance runner may fall behind and consider quitting. But then the coach yells, “Don’t give up! Keep going! Be strong—you can do it!” And the inspired team or runner works even harder, and, sometimes, even comes from behind to win.

Refusing to give up means doing what we know is right even when we don’t feel like it or the odds are stacked against us. We can feel like quitting in a lot of places: in school, doing work, in a relationship, even with our faith.

The early Christians knew that feeling. They lost jobs and friends for following Christ. Eventually the government branded them criminals, jailed them, and treated them terribly. They were told, “Turn your back on Jesus, and we’ll let you go.” But the believers hung tough because they knew the truth and that God was real.

In today’s verse the apostle Paul encourages believers to persevere, to endure. In fact, he said they should be happy because those tough times would make them stronger. Paul knew that—he had endured terrible punishments and abuse for following Christ.

So whatever you face, remember, “Don’t give up the ship!” and persevere.

We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they are good for us—they help us learn to endure. And endurance develops strength of character in us, and character strengthens our confident expectation of salvation. (Romans 5:3–4)

To Do

Read a story of a Christian who was persecuted for his or her faith. Your pastor or parent probably will know where to find one. If not, check out www.persecution.com, the website of Voice of the Martyrs.

Also on this day . . .

1938—The first Superman Comic was published.

1938—Baseball helmets were worn for the first time—ouch!

1944—The government of Mexico abolished the “siesta” (naptime).

From Betsy Schmitt and Dave Veerman, 365 Trivia Twist Devotions: An Almanac of Fun Facts and Spiritual Truth for Every Day of the Year (Cincinnati: Standard, 2005). Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation unless otherwise noted.