Part 1
Once upon a time, the Devil decided to have a huge yard sale. He advertised that he was selling off many of his tools. On the day of the sale, a curious crowd gathered, but they soon discovered that one tool had a big “Not for Sale” sign attached to it. One man got up his courage and approached the Devil. He asked him to explain what that tool did and why it wasn’t for sale. The Devil answered, “I can do without my other tools, but not this one. It is the most useful tool that I have. It is called “Discouragement,” and with it, I can find my way into hearts that would otherwise be unreachable. When I can get this tool into a person’s heart, it opens the way for me to put anything else in there that I want.”
What is it to be DISCOURAGED?
It is to be separated from and torn apart from hope, resulting in feeling like a victim and losing vision. At that point we become deprived of strength and confidence and we find ourselves walking in our own strength to try to fix it.
If I become discouraged because of a certain situation or circumstance and let certain emotions and/or feelings be my ruler, then my confidence and strength are lost. It is only when I regain the proper perspective that my strength and confidence ( my courage) returns and I am able to move forward again in a positive way.
So, what is courage?
- It is standing when everyone else wants to run.
- It is speaking when everyone else is afraid to speak.
- It is acting when everyone else is paralyzed by fear.
- It is taking action in the face of danger.
- And it is holding one’s character and moral uprightness when everyone else is tempted to compromise theirs.
We want to be ENCOURAGERS, inspiring hope; leading others to connect and rely upon God, for He is the one who gives us the courage and strength to move forward with confidence. We are walking in His strength and letting Him do what He is good at.
There is an awesome section in God’s Word that is about this very thing.
I Samuel 30:1-6
And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had invaded the south, and Ziklag, and smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire; 2 And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.
3 So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. 4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. 5 And David’s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6: And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.
Here’s the basic summary of the story. David returns with his few followers after trying to join the Philistine army. While away from home the Amalekites overran David’s small community and took all their wives, children and possessions. David’s loyal followers were not impressed and considered stoning David might be the best idea. Talk about an opportunity to get discouraged!!
David was “distressed“ and is suffering under extreme mental affliction. Obviously, it is more than just his own situation that has him down. Yes, his own family is being held captive, but also his people, his friends, and those most loyal to him are deeply grieved. That is really a huge amount of weight to bear. This word means to “squeeze or bind.”
Do you ever get in a stressful situation and it feels like you are caught in a vise grip? Kind of like you feel such overwhelming pressure such that you can’t think or concentrate about anything else but the problems. Sounds like exactly what David was feeling. The problem was binding him. In fact, in Hebrew, part of the word means “to berate yourself for not living up to an impossible standard.” David was feeling like he had let his friends and his followers down. Why? Because he had this impossible standard and now it was all collapsing on him.
So, what’s a person to do? What would you do? How do we handle things when we are feeling the pressure? Withdraw? Play the blame game? Cry out to God? Complain? Have a drink? Call your mother?
Interestingly enough in this case, David didn’t do any of the things I mentioned. According to verse 6 he “encouraged himself in the Lord.” Maybe this is not the best translation of the Hebrew word. I mean what did he do to encourage himself? Confess that everything would be ok? That it is not a big deal? I don’t think that would do it. The Hebrew word for “encourage” is given in such a way that it means he took it upon himself to encourage himself – in Jehovah, his God. This word is from another Hebrew word which means “to strengthen”, but this is a strengthening like becoming a rock. In its most basic form, it has the idea of binding. It is as if they are playing off each other. First, David was binding himself to the enemy and got very distressed and discouraged BUT when he started to bind himself to God, He became very encouraged.
Being distressed with the realities of the current situation, David’s imagination (mind) was running wild. The more he thought on the tragedy the more he bound himself to it and the fears and discouragements that come with it. But once He took hold of his imagination and directed it to God, God provided exactly what was needed in those moments of grief, sorrow and great stress.
Here is something to think about. David drew remarkably close to God at that moment. Wouldn’t you think that he should have clearly heard God’s voice? To get the answer and solution to his problem?
But he did not encourage himself with the Lord to get a solution to his problem. He did it to find rest for his soul. How about you? When a real problem hits what do we do?
Sometimes our first thoughts are to resolve our problems as quickly as possible and God seems to be the only one available to lend a hand. David just stood before God and rested in his presence. He did not run to God to solve his problem; he ran to God to find His peace. It doesn’t say how long this process took but we can assume that it worked! Beautifully, David’s first thought was towards God. And it leaves us with a humbling lesson as many times our thoughts in a crisis are usually our own selves.
Maybe next time our roof falls in, I (we) will be reminded to first think of God, His love, His faithfulness and find my rest and peace in Him.
In other words, I will be binding myself to the Lord (to pause and rest in Him) and not to the enemy (by way of the circumstance or situation). Once I am bound together with God, then God and I can address the issue at hand.
Psalm 62:5-12 NKJV
5 My soul, wait silently for God alone,
For my [a]expectation is from Him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation;
He is my defense;
I shall not be [b]moved.
7 In God is my salvation and my glory;
The rock of my strength,
And my refuge, is in God.
Chosen Gems 