HOW CAN I HANDLE DISCOURAGEMENT?
What can you do when you have the worlds deadliest decease?
Cancer, is fatal but atleast the Doctor can tell you when your going to die…
AIDS, right now with technology its not that Fatal (Magic Johnson), its not that contagious.
Polio…Not really.
Let me give you some hints…..
1. Its Universal, it can happen to almost everybody that can already think for themselves. From 2- 2,000 years old.
2. Its recurring it can happen, again and again and again—no not mumps.
3. Its highly contagious—just be with the person for a while, you need not touch him or talk to him, kahit na just looking at him, you can catch the decease.
4. It starts with the letter D and ends with the letters ment.
Answer. DISCOURAGEMENT! Yes, It sometimes it Fatal, it has ruined many lives, infected Millions or Billions of people just by being with them. All of us must have experienced it, and most probably it will happen again to us, that’s the BAD NEWS.
The GOOD NEWS is that DISCOURAGEMENT is curable—Read NEHEMIAH 4
Nehemiah was the leader of a group of Jews that had returned to Israel from Babylon to rebuild the Walls around Jerusalem. When they started they were filled with fervor, zeal, and excitement about the project. But after working they also got discouraged.
Today, we will try to see why people get discouraged, and how to overcome that discouragement-- what to do when we feel like giving up. Vs. 10-12 “Meanwhile, the people in Judah said, "The strength of the laborers is giving out, and there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall." Also our enemies said, "Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work." 12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, "Wherever you turn, they will attack us."
I. Why Do People Get Discouraged?
1. They are just plain tired.—Fatigue! “the people in Judah said, "The strength of the laborers is giving out” In other words they have worked a long time and were physically exhausted. Worn out--- Physically and mentally drained. – there are many times that people think that their discouragement is Spiritual, but the truth is its physical, they just need a break. Sometimes the most Spiritual thing to do is to rest.
Illust: I like the rest day last week, im glad there was a rest day. You need it, he wants you to have it. We were designed to have rest. I saw people lying down, I was happy for themJ
When do fatigue and discouragement come? Vs 6. 6 So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height
You get discouraged mid-way of the project, mid-way of the contract, mid-wqy of the work. Everybody works hard at first., for the people worked with all their heart. Why? Because of the newness of the prokect, but then it gets boring, routine ,then ritual, then your in a rut.
Illustration: Me painting a room, sarap planuhin, gandang isipin, I was so excited! Halfway through, I looked around and said. Im getting tired but im only ½ done, madami pa ito amd whats more dami ko pang lilinisin pagkatapos! Yaay!
I did a fatiguing thing not long ago. I opened up our cabinet and found a lot of pictures, halo-halo, church, school, home, hong-kong, jewels, julieth, etc…I thought of a noble and good thing, the best thing and the easiest thing to do. Re-organize the pictures, I have to put it into the albums, an hour came bye, im tired now, I got discouraged and put them back where I found them.
2. FRUSTRATION- “there is so much rubble that we cannot rebuild the wall” That’s frustration.
They were building the wall but as they built the wall, and daming kalat. There was rubble, old broken rocks, dirt and all broken tools were around. When they looked at all the Debris, they got discouraged.—They lost sight of the goal because of the junk in their lives.
Illus: Whenever you do a project, waste is going to accumulate. Remember I painted the walls, but there was more paint on the floor, on the cabinets. We cant avoid rubbish but we can learn to re-organize and learn what to do with it so that we van move on to the original plan.
a. What is rubbish in your life? The little things that get in the way, the interruptions, that keeps you from accomplishing your goals.
Illus: My member was trying to throw his trash can away. He said it’s the one thing you can’t get the garbage man to pick up. He said, I set an old rusty garbage can out at the street one morning thinking the garbage man would understand that it needed to be thrown away. He said, when I came back that afternoon the can was stacked up with the rest of my empty trash cans. Well the next week I put it out again and this time I turned it upside down so they could see that the bottom had several holes in it and it needed thrown away. When I came home it was stacked up next to the empty cans again. The next week I took a sledgehammer and I beat the can in pretty good and I left it out front and when I came home not only was it stacked up next to the other empty trash cans but the garbage man had actually tried to beat it back into shape. And so he said finally I did the only thing I could do. I went to the hardware store and bought a heavy duty chain and a padlock and I chained the old can to a large tree in my front yard. And sure enough, that night somebody stole it.
3. FAILURE- vs10 “We cannot rebuild the wall.”—Can you hear what they are saying? “We cant do this, its impossible”…they feel that it is a failure. They thougt it would be easy and fast but when it took too long , they lost heart and got discouraged, FAILURES!
Illustration: Perhaps you heard of the large two-engined train was crossing Canada. After it had gone some distance, one of the engines broke down. "No problem," the engineer thought, and carried on at half power. Farther on down the line, the other engine broke down, and the train came to a standstill. The engineer decided he should inform the passengers about why the train had stopped, and made the following announcement: "Ladies and gentlemen, I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that both engines have failed, and we will be stuck here for some time. The good news is that you decided to take the train and not fly." The good news is that there is hope even in failure.
What do we do when we fail?
Some have a pity party, they say oh poor me, this cant be done, they complain.
Some just blame others, its because they didn’t do a good job that’s why I failed.
Illus: The story was passed on over internet about Little Billy, a Jewish boy, who was failing his math lessons. His parents tried everything they could to get him to do better in this subject, but he continued to fail. At last, they took him down to the Catholic School, and enrolled him. After the first day, Billy came home and went up to his room, closed the door, and went to work on his math. His parents could hardly get him down for dinner. After dinner, he went back and "hit the books again." When his report card came next time, he laid it on the table for his parents to find. When his mother read it, she was amazed. He had an "A" in math. She questioned him about it wondering how such a change had come about. She asked him if it were the teachers, or the kind of books they used, but he said "no." Then why the change in his math scores? He said, "That first day at school, I looked up on the wall, and I saw a man nailed to a plus sign, and I knew that they were not fooling around here. So I went to work on my math." We all need a little motivation now and then.
4. STOPPED BY FEAR- Also our enemies said, "Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work."
a. They were people in the land that didn’t want the walls to be built—enemies.
b. Walls meant- unity, safety, become strong again—so they criticized, then ridiculed, then threatened.
c. So the Jews got discouraged.
A legend from India tells about a mouse that was terrified of cats until a magician agreed to transform him into a cat. That resolved his fear…until he met a dog, so the magician changed him into a dog. The mouse-turned-cat-turned-dog was content until he met a tiger-so, once again; the magician changed him into what he feared. But when the tiger came complaining that he had met a hunter, the magician refused to help. “I will make you into a mouse again, for though you have the body of a tiger, you still have the heart of a mouse.”
How will you know if your discouragement is out of fear? Simple, you have the desire to run away!
Illustration: My Dad loves this movie. The Giant is big and fearful, but as you come near him. Cristopher De Leon, Apeng daldal.
d. Notice Who it was that got Discouraged. “It was the Jews who lived near the Enemies.”v12— those who hang out with negative people lon genough will get their n=egativism too. If you keep hearing it cant be done, you will also be saying it cant be done too.
After all this Bad news that discourages us, we need not be discouraged because there is the antidote. Notice what Nehemiah did as a wise leader and a man of God. He knew what it was that was discouraging the people so he took the proper actions.
II. THE SOLUTION
1. REORGANIZE- “Find a better way” - v13. “Therefore I positioned some of the people behind the lowest points of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows.”--- In effect, were going to get organized. Were going to get a new system here, you people there and the other people there, and well get this problem solved.
When you get discouraged don’t give up on the goal, instead device a new approach. When you are Discouraged it doesn’t mean that you are doing the wrong thing. You might be doing the right thing in the wrong way. Was it wrong for the Jews to rebuild the wall? Absolutely not. They were doing the right thing in the wrong way, so they got discouraged.
Whats your problem that is discouraging you? Don’t give up on it. Try reorganizing. Marriage? A new approach.
Saying. Kung hindi madaan sa santong paspasan, santong dasalan na lang…
Illus: We had 2 months of reorganization and planning.
b. We need a support Group- “Nehemiah posted them by Families”—When I am down you lift me up, when you are down I will lift you up.” That’s a support group.
Illus: A parable is told of a farmer who owned an old mule. The mule fell into the farmer’s well. The farmer heard the mule "braying", or whatever mules do when they fall into wells. After carefully assessing the situation, the farmer sympathized with the mule, but decided that neither the mule nor the well were worth the trouble of saving. Instead he called his neighbors together and told them what had happened...and enlisted them to help haul dirt to bury the old mule in the well and put him out of his misery. Initially, the old mule was hysterical! But as the farmer and his neighbors continued shoveling and the dirt hit his back...a thought struck him. It suddenly dawned on him that every time a shovel load of dirt landed on his back.....HE SHOULD SHAKE IT OFF AND STEP UP! This he did blow after blow. "Shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up...shake it off and step up!" he repeated to encourage himself. No matter how painful the blows, or distressing the situation seemed the old mule fought "panic" and just kept right on SHAKING IT OFF AND STEPPING UP! It was not long before the old mule, battered and exhausted, STEPPED TRIUMPHANTLY OVER THE WALL OF THAT WELL. What seemed like it would bury him, actually blessed him.....all because of the manner in which he handled his adversity. THAT’S LIFE! If we face our problems, respond to them positively, and refuse to give in to panic, bitterness or self-pity... The adversities that come along to bury us usually have within them the potential to benefit and bless us!
2. REMEMBER YOUR LEADER- Neh. 4:14 “After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the Nobles, officials anf the people. Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord who is great and awesome.
a. Remember what the Lord has already done in your life. That will lift you up. All the good things, will lift up your spirit.
A Young Businessman came to his pastor discouraged and said pastor “Id lost everything” The pastor replies…
You have lost your values—Not exactly.
You have lost your character – no not exactly it is still there.
Eternal life—no its still there
b. Remember Gods closeness in the Present. “I will never leave you nor forsake you”
Daniel 3:14-28 14Nebuchadnezzar said to them, ‘Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods and you do not worship the golden statue that I have set up? 15Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, drum, and entire musical ensemble to fall down and worship the statue that I have made, well and good.* But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire, and who is the god that will deliver you out of my hands?’ 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to present a defence to you in this matter. 17If our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire and out of your hand, O king, let him deliver us.* 18But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods and we will not worship the golden statue that you have set up.’
c. Remember Gods power for the Future.
3. FIGHT THE GLOOMY OUTLOOK – Neh. 4:14 “ Fight for your brothers, fight for your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes. What is Nehemiah saying—“Don’t yield to discouragement without a fight.” Resist discouragement.
You do not have to be discouraged, it is a choice that we choose. You may choose to give in but great people choose not to be discouraged.
Illus: THE GRADUATION GIFT A young man was getting ready to graduate from college. For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealers showroom, and knowing that his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted. As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car. Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box. Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather bound Bible, with the young man’s name embossed in gold. Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, "With all your money you give me a BIble?" and stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible. Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and wonderful family, but realized his father was very old and thought perhaps he should go to him. He had not seen him since that graduation day. But before he could make arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son. He needed to come home immediately and take care of things. When he arrived at his father’s house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart. He began to search through his father’s important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago. With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages. His father has carefully underlined a verse, Matthew 7:11, "And if ye, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father which is in heaven, give to those who ask Him?" As he read those words, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible. It had a tag with the dealers name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired. On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words....PAID IN FULL. How many times have we missed God’s blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? – Many times Gods blessings are packed in Life’s difficulties.
