Finding Encouragement

 

        Have you found yourself in a state of fear, despair, loneliness, or loss?  The rest of the world may be celebrating, but despair follows you wherever you go.  The Apostle Paul understood this kind of feeling in 2 Corinthians 1:8  "“We were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life."  Whether you feel slowly drained into hopelessness by the accumulation of many everyday stresses or life has been torn down by one difficult and painful situation, what you need is encouragement.

        What do we need when we’re overwhelmed—someone who will stay with us, walk beside us through the dark valley and somehow lift us up when we grow weak?  Do you see the Lord as your encourager?   God is there to help us handle what we are given in life.  2 Corinthians 1:5  "For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ."  God also gave us another form of help and encouragement through the Holy Spirit.  John 14: 16  "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever."

        " Upon salvation, we aren’t expected to fend for ourselves. God tenderly cares for us as His children, and He’s promised never to leave or forsake us. Even when we feel as if we’re all alone in our struggles, God is there, carrying us through when we have no more strength to continue.  If we never had troubles, we’d never know this comforting aspect of God or depend upon Him as we should. In fact, He sometimes allows us to go through suffering and hardships that are beyond our ability to bear “so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God” (2 Corinthians 1:9). He sovereignly rules over every situation we face, setting limitations on the intensity and determining the depth, length, and darkness of the valley we walk—all with the purpose of bringing us through, looking more like His beloved Son and having a closer relationship with Him." [intouch.org]  

          Sometimes God doesn't answer our prayers on our timeline, we can feel abandoned by God and withdraw into ourselves.  This is not the correct response to our discouragement.  "In those quiet moments alone with the Lord, He offers us strength and encouragement to persevere and grace to trust and delight in Him alone. There is nothing in the world to match the intimacy we find in His presence during times of need."

         Romans 15:5   "May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had."

         1 Thessalonians 5:11  "Therefore encourage one another and build each other up"

         As for myself, I have been in the field of discouragement many times but I do not dwell there.  God encourages me by His faithfulness. His Word encourages me with truth, godly examples of people who have struggled too, and His promises.  As I look around, I see God in everything...from my dog, Jack, who is well and gives me great joy daily; to my cat, Tux, who is a constant presence of companionship; to my caregivers who seek to meet every need of my care; to my parents who try to be there for me as much as they know how; to my friends who bring me joy by listening to my thoughts and going out with me for fun.  The list of ways God encourages me with others is endless.  When no one else is around, He is still with me and His Word still encourages my thoughts.  How blessed I am in so many encouraging ways, but Satan still tries to come to kill and destroy those blessings from God.  Turning my eyes upon Jesus is the only way to keep me on the right path.  Psalm 46:1-3  "God is our refuge and strength,    an ever-present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way  and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging."

It may seem insignificant
To say a word or two;
But when we give encouragement,
What wonders it can do! —K. De Haan

A word of encouragement can make the difference between giving up or going on.