Myth-Busters against Discouragement

Myth-Busters against Discouragement

Chip Ingram

Satan
once put his tools up for sale in a garage sale. All of them were
there: hatred, envy, jealousy, deceit, pride—each with an individual
price tag. Off to the side was a harmless-looking tool, well worn, but
priced very, very high. One of the shoppers asked him what that tool
was and why it was so expensive.

"That's discouragement," he said. "It's more useful to me than all
the others put together. I can get at someone's heart more deeply with
discouragement than with anything else. It's so worn out because I use
it on almost everyone. And the best part is they rarely know I'm using
it."

The enemy still uses discouragement as a tool, and he uses it on each of us day in and day out.

Because discouragement often comes from pessimism about how things
will turn out, one of the best ways to overcome it is to get God's
perspective of our future. In order to do that, we have to let go of
two myths.

The first myth about the future is that our situation "will always
be this way." If your job has always been terrible, you'll eventually
embrace the myth that it always will be. Same goes for a marriage, a
home, parents, children, or whatever else you struggle with.
Discouragement interprets the past and present as an unbreakable
pattern, which leads to more discouragement. If we want to see life
from God's perspective, we have to reject that myth.

The second myth about the future is that when we make a change for
the better, we expect things to start improving almost immediately.
Many people find themselves in an overwhelmingly difficult situation
and begin praying, going to church, studying the Bible, and overhauling
their lifestyle as a result. And when they've stuck with it for a week,
a month, or even a year, and nothing seems to be getting any better,
they feel like they've gotten a raw deal. Never mind that they've been
sowing bad seed into a career or a family situation for twenty years.
Most of us feel that if we've made the right changes, we ought to see
the right consequences happen pretty soon. And while God mercifully
works that way sometimes, He doesn't always. Sometimes the fruit of our
obedience takes a long time to grow.

God's perspective on our future is this: "Blessed is the man who
perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will
receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him"
(James 1:12). That's a great promise. It encourages us that things will
change; whatever we feel stuck in now isn't permanent.

But this promise also reminds us that change requires perseverance.
It doesn't usually happen overnight. God honors loving obedience and
faith that can stick it out over time. And the reward for enduring is a
crown of life.

God promises deep fulfillment and rich joy beyond your wildest
dreams. When you come through your trials, you begin to experience it.
That's why, if you've ever met a gentle, loving, wise person who
radiates the love of Jesus, I can almost guarantee that he or she has
suffered deeply. The way God produces that kind of person is through
adversity. They don't give up, the life of Christ begins to manifest
through them, and they have an inner joy and fulfillment from God that
can't be touched by circumstances now and that is greatly magnified in
heaven.

Are you looking at your future through the lens of whatever problems
you face today? Or do you see it through the certainty of God's
promise? Don't give up and don't give in. God says you will receive a
reward when the test is finished. You'll get a fulfilling life on this
earth in communion with Him, and you'll receive an eternal heavenly
crown. And discouragement will be an old, worn-out tool never to be
used on you again.

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Here I Raise My Ebenezer

Here I Raise My Ebenezer

. . . and there he built an altar to the Lord.
1 Samuel 7:17b

Recommended Reading Joshua 4:1-9

There's
a peculiar line in the classic hymn "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing"
that many of us probably never even realized was there. It's in the
second stanza; and it says, "Here I raise my Ebenezer." Similarly, many
of us may not be familiar with the single verse from which that line
originated. Robert Robinson apparently not only knew of the verse but
also understood its meaning and importance, for it was he who wrote
those words into his beautiful and timeless hymn.

In 1 Samuel 7:12 we are told that "Samuel took a stone and set it up . . . and called its name Ebenezer, saying ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us.'"
That stone was a reminder to the Israelites of God's faithfulness and
might. It was set up so that no matter what situation they were in,
they would be able to hark back to their defeat of the Philistines in
which God was faithful to deliver them.

What reminders
do you have of God's faithfulness in your life? It may be a picture, a
song, a powerful verse that really spoke to your heart during a
difficult time. Whatever it is, keep it at hand so that when you are
discouraged you can not only use it to recall how God has blessed and
helped you, but you can also look forward to His future faithfulness.

Ebenezer—from two Hebrew words pronounced together: Even Haazer—"Stone of Help."

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The Little Grass Hut

The only survivor of a shipwreck was washed up on a small, uninhabited island. He prayed feverishly for God to rescue him, and every day he scanned the horizon for help, but none seemed forthcoming. Exhausted, he eventually managed to build a little hut out of driftwood to protect himself from the elements and to store his few possessions. One day, after scavenging for food, he arrived home to find his little hut in flames with smoke rolling up to the sky. The worst had happened! Everything was lost! He was stunned with disbelief, grief, and anger. "God, how could you do this to me?" he cried.

Early the next day he was awakened by the sound of a ship that was approaching the island. It had come to rescue him."How did you know I was here?" asked the weary man of his rescuers.

"We saw your smoke signal," they replied.

Moral of the story:

It's easy to get discouraged when things are going bad, but we shouldn't lose heart, because God is at work in our lives, even in the midst of pain and suffering. Remember that, the next time your little hut seems to be burning to the ground. It just may be a smoke signal that summons the grace of God .

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