Defeating Discouragement

April 24, 2019 | By Chuck

I’m sure we’re all familiar with discouragement. Most of us know discouragement by experience. It could be that you didn’t get the grade that you feel you deserved or maybe you were overlooked for the job you wanted. From the way people treat you to receiving bad news, any of these things can cause discouragement. Discouragement is that age old tool that Satan uses to destroy the fruitfulness of the faithful. A Christian who is defeated with discouragement is a Christian who is just going through the motions spiritually and not very productive for the Lord. Satan wants to highlight all of the negatives in your life, in hopes of distracting you from the Lord and discouraging you.
Discouragement is not a new problem for God’s people. Elijah, when threatened by Jezebel, was so discouraged that he wanted to die. (I Kings 19:4) Judas was so discouraged by his own act of betraying Jesus that he took his life. (Mt.27:3-5) So what are Christians to do about discouragement? None of us are immune to discouragement, so how do we defeat it?
There are two things that must happen for you and I to defeat discouragement. First of all, we must believe that God truly does care about us, even when we are at our lowest. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you”(I Pet.5:6-7). Discouraged people have a tendency to think that God doesn’t care about them. Peter confirms that isn’t the case. If fact, God cares so much for us that He is willing to take our anxieties from us.
The next thing we must do is keep the lines of communication open with God. In other words, don’t stop praying no matter what. “Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Phil.4:5-6). Prayer helps us to readjust our focus back to God and away from life’s negatives that bring discouragement. When you are discouraged, remember that God cares for you always and that He wants to hear from you and help you defeat discouragement.