Discouragement is not the absence of adequacy but the
absence of courage. Sometimes it helps to break words down to see
exactly what they mean. In many cases
regarding emotions, it helps us to better understand why we call it what we do
and how they affect us.
The root word of
discouragement is courage, so it should only make sense that the feelings
associated with failure and rejection often try to deal a blow to our inner
source of courage. Courage is the ability to confront fear, pain, risk, danger,
uncertainty, or intimidation. Unfortunately,
these invaders can cripple you to the point where you avoid taking small risks
that have huge potential rewards. Courage
is not the absence of these things. It
is the ability to move forward in the face of them.
We tend to think of success
in large terms and we don’t really count the small victories in our lives as
successes. Actually the total of the
small victories really equals the huge
success that makes up our life. We also
proclaim our whole life a failure over one small defeat.
When we become discouraged it
may be a sign that we have let go of our faith in God. We need to gain Godly courage to get us
through discouraging times; to know that He is in control.
Remember:
- There is no failure in God.
- Second, there is no defeat in God.
- Third, there is no deficiency in God.
Remembering these things brings courage in
discouraging times. Godly courage will
help us claim God’s promises for us in order to do what God wants us to do. We can see this in operation in the life of
Joshua in the Old Testament. God says, Be strong and of
a good courage: for unto this people shalt thou divide for an inheritance the
land, which I sware unto their fathers to give them. Joshua 1:6. Joshua
took up the job of leading the Children of Israel into the Promised Land after
Moses died. He must have felt
discouraged after his death. He probably
felt scared and inadequate. He needed
Godly courage to carry out the task and claim what God had promised, not only
for him, but for a whole group of people.
Joshua needed to hear God’s voice – to be encouraged by Him. He needed
to understand that God was adequate enough to handle the situation. All Joshua needed to do was to have FAITH in
God. Like Joshua, when we come to this
realization we can have courage because we understand that whatever we face God
is going to bring us through it. It
comes back to the issue that discouragement is really a lack of faith.
· God can command us to courage because He commands us
to FAITH in HIM.
· Our fear is the product of an inadequate vision of God
and nothing less.
· How far can you trust God in the circumstances and the
mission of your life? The same God that can heal the body and give you a job can
lead you to evangelism and missions.
Encouragement is the process of giving
courage and hope to someone. Encouragement becomes sharing about God.
Scripture to
Claim:
Have I not commanded you? Be strong and
courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you
wherever you go. Joshua 1:9
