Discouragement

Sadly, too many people feel discouraged by the things that are going on in our world whether it’s in the USA or another country abroad. Many people are discouraged and unhappy with what is going on in their backyard. We see with many of the protests that people want to change things.

Personally, I believe that many of the protesters are trying to accomplish something good but far too many are taking advantage of an already bad situation. Rather than trying to accomplish good, they are only in it for what they can get out and there are many examples to point to that illustrates this point.

Unfortunately, looking at oneself in the mirror is hard for most anyone to do and one reason is the lack of humility. When we are humbled, we see the world through a different lens but when we look to see what is really going on in our world, it’s is easy to understand why a person would get down. There is a lot of confusion and confusion comes from Satan: “For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints” (1 Corinthians 14:33).

This is by design and a strategy that Satan uses. Satan wants us in a state of confusion with very little hope and no encouragement. He wants us discouraged which is why scripture tells us not to be fearful or anxious for nothing. God tells us not to worry or fear not 365 times in scripture which is one per day. When we read God’s blueprint then we understand that God knows exactly how the human spirit is and he knows what we need. 1 Peter 5:7 tells us to cast all of our care upon him for he careth for you.”

One of the biggest side effects of being discouraged is depression and there are many stiatiscs available for depression. Depression is a real condition that impacts Christians and Christians alike and while many will tell you that a Christian should never be depressed, I am not one of those who overlook the realities of life. It is obvious that God wants us to be happy and living joyful lives but there are things that do take us away from living such lives: “And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me” (Psalm 50:15).

When we pay attention to God and His word, we realize that He is never far from us even in times of trouble or hardship. This is just one difference between God and man. There are far too many people who disappear from us when we don’t have anything to offer. It hurts me at times when I think about the times when I was there for certain people but when they did not need me, I was no longer on their radar. There have been times when I tried to reach someone for weeks and even months and could not go through and it does hurt but we must learn to move on and learn: “For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring” (Acts 17:28).