Discouragement can rob peace, joy, and contentment. But I have great news if you feel disheartened: You need not be stuck!
I’ve known people who appeared to be in impossible situations. A few years later, however, they were in a terrific place, either in terms of their circumstances or their emotions. The reason? They never gave up. Instead of sulking in self-pity, they chose to believe God and step out in faith. In that way, they did not remain entrenched in an emotional pit.
Nehemiah is a good example. He had every reason to feel defeated, because his people were in trouble. After receiving news that the city wall had been destroyed, this man of God acknowledged profound disappointment and grieved. Yet doing so was risky, because sadness in the presence of royalty was punishable by death.
Though pain flooded his soul, Nehemiah didn’t allow himself to stay in that low place. Instead, he cried out to God for direction. And the Lord answered with amazing power, prompting the king to notice his servant’s sad countenance and then to ask what he could do to help. This miracle led to the rebuilding of the wall and the redemption of God’s people.
The Lord can take an impossible situation—no matter what it is—and move in ways mightier than you can imagine. Do you live in eager expectation of what the Lord will do? Or have you chosen to linger in the depths of despair? Like Nehemiah, turn your disappointment into a petition for God’s help. He can restore your hope and prevent negative emotions from gaining a stranglehold on your life.
Do you ever feel stuck in discouragement? If so, you are not alone.
At some point, everyone experiences dashed hopes. Disappointment—an emotional response to a failed expectation—is the normal initial reaction. But allowed to linger, it can turn into discouragement, which hovers like a dense cloud. When that’s the case, there is no sense of joy or contentment, regardless of what you do.
The circumstances that trigger these emotions may be unavoidable, but how we respond is a choice. Either we can let sadness overwhelm our soul or we can face the situation with courage and bring it before the One who can help.
Living in discouragement will divide the mind, making it hard to focus on anything besides our pain. Then as anger becomes habitual, we’ll look for someone to blame—whether God, people around us, or ourselves.
Frustration that isn’t handled well may develop into despair, which in turn can estrange us from others—people do not enjoy the company of someone who’s bitter and defeated. This isolation leads to low self-esteem. Finally, in a fog of discouragement, we can make poor decisions based on crushed emotions instead of truth. Obviously, choosing this self-destructive path is not God’s best for us.
Though we all face disappointment from time to time, believers are not to wallow in it. Instead, God wants us to trust Him with everything—even unmet expectations and deep sadnesses. Remember, there is divine purpose for everything He allows to touch His children’s lives (Rom. 8:28).
No matter what specific form temptation takes in our lives, the enemy uses a fairly standard process to get us off track. And it is as effective as ever.
First, we begin to think about the object of our desire. We play with it in our mind, imagining how we would feel if it were ours. Isn’t it interesting that no matter how many blessings God has showered upon us, we always seem to focus on the one thing we do not have! We must ask ourselves, Could the enemy be trying to redirect my focus?
Remember, Satan wants to alienate us from the Lord. If he can get us to take our eyes off God and instead fix our attention on what we feel we’re lacking, then he can lead us to temptation.
Next, the thought builds until it finally gives way to full-blown desire. This intense longing is the culmination of our imaginings. We’re no longer content simply to enjoy the object in our mind; now, we must actually have it.
Finally, the desire leads to a choice. Here is where we make the decision, Will I give in to this sin, or will I lay it down and submit to the Lord’s will for my life?
Through the Holy Spirit’s power, we have the ability to walk away at any point in the process of temptation. We are never helpless to defuse the situation, no matter how much momentum has built up.
Do you ever feel as if you are powerless to stop a growing temptation in your life? Understanding the nature of this progressive process can help you to stand firm against the enemy’s tactics.
Everybody experiences temptation. No matter how spiritual you are or how long you’ve followed Christ, you have been tempted. Sometimes this experience seems like a faint whisper, and other times it’s an unbearable shout in your mind. Regardless of how it sounds, you know just what temptation feels like. But if someone asked, could you define the term?
Temptation is simply an enticement to take a God-given desire beyond God-given boundaries. Many people reject this idea, refusing to believe that guilt-instilling allurements could be even remotely related to the Lord. But think about it: In what ways are you most often tempted? In the area of material possessions? Intimacy? Companionship? Food? These are all things that God not only created but also uses to bless His people. The problem comes when we—who still carry around the old “programming” of our flesh nature—take those drives beyond the healthy limits that God has set for our lives.
For example, He created sex for enjoyment within a marriage relationship. However, when this divinely approved desire is corrupted by physical intimacy outside of marriage, then what the Creator designed for His purposes becomes a source of guilt and shame. That is not what God intended.
One of the enemy’s top strategies is to distort a God-given drive for his own vile purposes. You can short-circuit such an attack: Remind yourself where this urge came from in the first place, and then ask God for the strength to use such drives for His glory, as He intended.
“Let your conscience be your guide.” This bit of folk wisdom seems to make sense because our conscience is designed to help us discern right from wrong. However, people cannot always trust their internal radar to steer them correctly; this is the case particularly with unbelievers, who don’t have the Holy Spirit to reveal truth and offer guidance for wise decisions. And while Christians do have God’s indwelling Spirit, they should be careful not to harbor sin, as that can interfere with the way their morality sensors function.
For a conscience to be trustworthy, it must be programmed with scriptural teaching. Believers build a stable and sensitive spiritual radar system by applying God’s truth to their life. They are committed to thinking and acting in ways that honor and please the Lord. Then, when sinful thoughts or choices come across that radar, it will deliver a sharp warning.
Those with a reliable conscience will have a strong desire to obey God. Instead of settling for what feels right or looks good, they seek the Lord’s will. In other words, they do not rely solely on their conscience but incorporate all of the Holy Spirit’s tools—including Scripture and prayer—into their daily activities. Moreover, when their spiritual radar sounds the alarm, they are quick to draw back and reject unwise choices.
A conscience isn’t designed to be our guide; it is a tool of the Guide. The Holy Spirit not only convicts us of sin, but He also brings to mind godly principles and leads us on a righteous path. He uses a variety of tools to conform us to the likeness of Christ (Rom. 8:29).
