When It Feels Like Our Efforts Don’t Matter
About this episode
When It Feels Like Our Efforts Don’t Matter
“I have labored in vain” — (from Isaiah 49:4)
Sometimes it feels like we are just spinning our wheels.
Even Isaiah—one of the great prophets in scripture—knew this tension.
There are moments when we pour ourselves out for our families, our friends, our neighbors, our communities, and our work.
We give what we have. We try to be faithful. And still, we don’t see the results we hoped for.
It can make us wonder if our efforts have been wasted.
These moments are not unusual. They may even be part of the path.
But in these moments, we remember:
It is God who holds us, who forms us, and who sustains us.
We are not the source of the outcome.
We are called to be faithful—to live as a light, to reflect the pathways of God’s love.
And to trust that what is being formed in and through us is not lost, even when we cannot yet see it.
—
We are not wasting our lives. Let us remain faithful.
—
I’m Horace McMillon. This is 60 Seconds of Hope. Peace be with you.
⸻
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60 Seconds of Hope with Horace McMillon — When It Feels Like Our Efforts Don’t Matter. Machine-transcribed; use the interactive transcript above to jump the player to any line.
I have labored in vain, sometimes it feels like we're just spinning our wheels. Even Isaiah, one of the greatest prophets in the scripture, has known this tension. There are moments when we pour ourselves out for our families, our friends, our neighbors, our communities, and our work. We give what we have, we try to be faithful, and still we don't always see the results we hope for. It can make us wonder if our efforts have been wasted. These moments are not unusual, they may even be part of the path. But in these moments, we remember it is God who holds us, who forms us, and who sustains us. We are not the source of the outcome. We are called to be faithful, to live as a light, to reflect the pathways of God's love, and to trust that what is being formed in and through us is not lost, even when we cannot yet see it. We are not wasting our lives. Let us remain faithful. I'm Jorge McMillan, this is 60 seconds of hope. Peace be with you.
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