Defeating The Giant Of Discouragement ( 3)

WHEN discouragement gets to a depression level, the devil isolates the person from help until he/ she is finished. Discouragement can make great men to weep like babies. In 1 Samuel 30: 4, David and his men returned from war to find that the enemies had raided their city, carried away their wives, children and razed the city. Such a mighty army broke down, weeping until they had no strength left in them. Sometimes too, discouragement makes you to regret your actions and look for whom to blame.

David’s men blamed him for their predicament and wanted to stone him to death, but he encouraged himself in the Lord. Often times, when men are faced with situations like this, they resort to the blame game. We see couples blame each other, children blame their parents, followers blame their leaders and even congregants blame their pastors for not praying enough. The irony of this all is that when things are rosy everybody flows together without questioning or previewing the consequences. The blame game and stoning

Text: Numbers 13: 25- 33; Numbers 14: 1- 10

of a scapegoat only seems to bring a little relief to the people concerned, but never solves the problem. Learn to be different like David who encouraged himself in the Lord and quickly sought a solution to the problem at hand. Discouragement can becloud one’s reasoning just to keep you entrapped in the ugly circumstance. You must rise up to defeat it.

The causes of discouragement are: fatigue or burnout. This happens when we work for too long without rest. Nehemiah 4: 10 says, the strength of the labourers begins to decay. Secondly, frustration can lead to discouragement when things are not working out as you planned. You can become weighed down. Again, fear can bring discouragement, especially when you receive a negative report as we see in Numbers 13: 30- 35.

Disappointment or betrayal from trusted ones could also cause discouragement. When people receive bad news, they also get discouraged ( Prov. 25: 25). Sometimes, dashed hope or expectations and unexpected loss of a loved one or something precious can cause discouragement ( Prov. 13: 12).

Some signs to tell when you are feeling discouraged are; unwillingness to accept a new task, loss of enthusiasm to go to work most days. Secondly, you don’t see the impact of your work. Again, you don’t feel you have any advancement opportunities. Lastly, you lack focus when you work and you have a feeling of heaviness, sadness and even hopelessness.

Discouragement is not a sin in itself, but it can make you to sin in the following ways. It can tempt you to blame God. It can make you to doubt God and His promises. It can make you to distant yourself from God.

• Rev. John Okene, Divine Touch Int’l Ministries Warri, Delta State. Dtimchurch@ Gmail. Com. Prayer Line: + 2348135952623