The Remedy For Discouragement (Part 3)
“But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith…keep yourselves in God’s love…” Jude 1:20-21
The remedy for discouragement is to cultivate within you the spirit of a carpenter. You must be determined in times of hardship not to allow the enemy to keep you down. There are three ways God wants to rebuild your life. The first way is to rebuild the altar of prayer. The second thing you have to do if you are going to rebuild everything the enemy has scattered is to rebuild your relationships with people. When the enemy has scattered and divided your family, stop complaining and go to work!
We are a selfie generation. Some people post 400 pictures of themselves on social media a day! This sprint has gotten into our churches, and many Christians have become self-centered. When we are going through a difficulty, we can be tempted to dwell on ourselves and how we are victims, but God wants you to see it differently. When you start focusing on other people, you will begin to see how God can get the glory for how you overcome this trying time. You can be healed by building someone else up who is going through what you are facing. You may have struggled with anorexia, suicidal thoughts, alcoholism, or marital conflict, but you didn’t give up. It was hard, but you made it through. Your testimony can be a tools another person needs.
There was a Christian psychologist who saw a woman regularly for three years. She had been through dysfunction and abuse and was having a hard time healing from it all. On the day of her last visit, the psychologist said, “I am going to listen to you for 60 minutes, and for the last 15, I am going to talk.” He listened to her for the last time and started his story. He told her how he had been walking through cancer, chemotherapy, and many other hardships, but he had been able to keep his joy by helping others. The woman was so touched to know that the professional helping her was going through far worse things and staying happy through it all.
Find someone who has a bigger problem than you and lift them up. The third way to stay out of the pits of discouragement is to build yourself up. Jude 1:20 says, “build yourself up in the most holy faith…by praying in the spirit.” We can see that David lived by this principle in 2 Samuel 20 when he lost his home and family in Ziglag. The Bible says that even his own men talked about stoning him. His wife and kids were kidnapped, and his men blamed him for everything. But the Bible said, “He encouraged himself in the Lord.” When you start to get into a slump, turn on some worship music and begin thanking God for everything you have been given. Take some time to marvel at a sunset or walk in a beautiful natural place and encourage yourself in the Lord. Remember what He has brought you out of. Lift up your head because God’s not done with you yet!
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