“Encouragement”
September 26, 2010
“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 15:4-6
I was praying, as I do each week, about what God would have me share with you this morning, and the world “encouragement” caught my eye. And as I usually do, I ignored the message. But God was just getting started. While puttering around my office, I picked up a book I hadn’t read in years. It was by Charles Stanley and it was entitled “Encourage Me”. “Interesting”, I thought. Still didn’t get it. Last night I was concerned about sharing a message with you, so I prayed, “Lord, tell me what to share with the people.” I woke up about 7 with the sermon outline running through my mind. I don’t always get my messages from God like that – but I do every once in a while. So God’s word for you today is – “encouragement”. We all need it don’t we? The reason I bought that book by Stanley, years ago, was because I really needed encouraging at one time. And that is one way we can get it. Get a good book or two on the subject and read what God has taught others and laid on their hearts.
I also like to be around encouraging people, when I am down. Some of our friends are not encouraging. We love them. We wouldn’t trade them for the world – but they have a knack for discouraging us. Good people. Godly people. But they have unrealistic expectations of us or focus on the negative. Many have a negative and critical spirit. We don’t need to be around those kinds of people when we are discouraged. We need to get around encouraging friends.
I thing one of the best things I do when I need encouraged is to go to God – He is the Great Encourager. Did you notice the Scripture? Part of it said,
“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement…”
God gives encouragement. He builds you up. He tells you, you can do it! He helps you. He teaches you. He fills you with His Spirit of joy!
God also uses His Word. Our Scripture said,
“through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
God’s Word encourages us. We need to read it daily. We need to mark those passages that lift us up and encourage us so we can be blessed by them over and over.
So notice this fact. God gives encouragement and the Bible gives encouragement. Both also give endurance. We can only endure with a lot of encouragement. And the result is ‘hope’. Hope is the “trusting expectation that God will keep His Word”. So when you are hopeful you have a positive expectation. You are trusting for good things. I think it is impossible to a have a heart full of hope and be discouraged at the same time. Discouragement is hopelessness. And when you are discouraged I think it is a sign that you have drifted away from the Word and/or God. Maybe you are just going through the motions. Perhaps you are trying to do the right things -but the need is to open that “can of courage” that only God can provide.
If you are discouraged this morning I encourage you to get into the bible and dig out God’s promises and also go to Him in prayer. Pray real honest, from the heart, prayers. Tell Him how you feel. Be completely, transparently, honest with Him and yourself. God knows what’s in your heart anyway. He just wants you to be aware of it and to verbalize it. There is healing in the process.
This morning I want to share with you three things that discourage and three things that encourage. At one time I struggled with depression and discouragement. I had to work through it. God helped me work through it. I share with you what worked for me. I hope this may bring encouragement to your life. Life isn’t fun when you are discouraged. You cannot be effective serving the Lord when you are discouraged. Discouragement sucks the strength out of our spirits and we are left wilted, spineless shadows of what we could be.
The first thing that discourages is sin. Sin separates us from God. Sin separates us from His encouragement. When we sin, the Holy Spirit convicts us of that sin. Can guilt and hope reside in the same heart? I don’t think so. Besides that, sin often has its own way of discouraging. For instance, alcohol is a depressant. Before I was a Christian, in my depression I often turn to alcohol – which depressed me even further. Many drugs are depressants. Even the ‘uppers’ wear your body out and tear you down and leave you broken and aged and discouraged with life.
Before I invited Christ to come into my life, I would often turn to alcohol, put a depressing song on the stereo, and wallow in self-pity. What a destructive cycle! Somehow Jesus found me and lifted me from the pit of darkness. But sin will drag you into that pit of despair.
Another thing that causes discouragement is selfishness. Self-centeredness separates us, not only from God, but from others as well. When we are so engrossed in our own will and getting our own way – we push others away from us. We become lonely and self-centered. We were not created to be alone. God saw that it wasn’t good for Adam to be alone – and it isn’t good for you to be alone either. Solomon said that one can be defeated. (Ecc. 4:12) God tells us that we are meant to be a part of a body. (1 Cor. 12) When we are not functioning as intended, when we are not living as God designed us, with others – it leads to depression and discouragement. I’m not saying everyone should be married – but everyone needs to be a part of a church body. Everyone needs the intimacy of small groups. We were not designed to be alone.
Short sightedness also causes discouragement. Life is a marathon – not a sprint. Think of all the people in the Bible who went through tough times only to emerge into God’s blessings. Moses, Abraham, Job, David, Joseph, and on and on it goes. God must allow us to encounter difficulties and problems and trials – otherwise we wouldn’t be able to grow into the strong spiritual warriors He wants us to become. In the midst of the trial - believe in the coming blessing. In the midst of the problem – realize there is a solution. In the middle of the difficulty – remember days of refreshing await. If you only see the problem – you will get discouraged. Short sightedness causes discouragement, as does selfishness and sin.
Let me tell you what encourages me. First of all, God’s love encourages me. When you are a little discouraged think about how must God loves you. David said,
“You have searched me, LORD, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.” Psalm 139:1-4
“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
Psalm 139: 13-16
God knows you! God knows all about you! God knows your thoughts before you think them. He knows what is in your heart. He knows the temptation you get bombarded with. He knows when you give in and blow it. And He still loves you - just like you still love your kids when they blow it. You may discipline them – but you love them. The Bible says,
“he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.”
Psalm 103:10-14
I am encouraged when I realize that I am loved – warts and all! I am not perfect by any means. But God loves me with all my faults and flaws. God expresses that love by forgiving my sins, making wonderful plans for my future, comforting me when I am down, giving me strength in my weakness and a whole lot more. I go to God when I need encouraging. I cry out to Him. I bring all my burdens and fears to Him. And He puts His arms of love around me and assures me it will be okay. Everything will be fine – as long as He is with me. And He promises to never leave me or forsake me. Even when I can’t ‘feel’ Him – He is there. Even when I can’t see Him working – He is. Go to God when you are discouraged.
Secondly, when I am discouraged I remember the plans God has for me. He has created me an eternal being with an eternal home. I was created to be happy here. I was created for heaven. The Bible, talking about the great heroes of faith, says,
“All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.”
Hebrews 11:13
These great men and women realized they were created for heaven – not earth. The considered themselves to be foreigners and strangers on earth. Ever feel like you just don’t fit? Ever feel like you are a square peg trying to fit in a round hole? You should. You don’t belong here. You are a stranger here. But there is a place you belong. Listen to what Paul wrote,
“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God's people and also members of his household” Ephesians 2:13-19
You are foreigners and strangers in this world – but you do have a home. You do belong. You are a citizen of heaven. You belong to God’s people. When I am discouraged I think about that place for waiting for me – that was created just for me. Jesus said,
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. M y Father's house has plenty of room; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” John 14:1-3
Often when I am down I go for a walk in mountain meadows, or a flower garden or someplace beautiful, and think about how beautiful the place Jesus is preparing for me must be. He knows my hearts desires; He knows what trills me; He knows the silent yearnings of my heart. Knowing all that – taking all that into consideration – He is preparing a place for me. He is also preparing a heavenly place for you, too. With just you in mind, He is creating something fabulous, something awesome, something that will blow your mind away. Meditate on that when you are down.
One last thing. When I am down, I think about God’s promises concerning my future. Listen to this:
“I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.” Romans 8:18
“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” 2 Corinthians 4:17
“And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.” 1 Peter 5:4
“Blessed and holy are those who have part in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.” Revelation 20:6
We have a future. We were created to reign with Jesus. The bible tells us that the stuff we go through here and now is NOTHING compared with what is coming. All the trials and temptations and struggles we have now – will seem so insignificant in comparison with our future. In our future is glory and honor and praise! I don’t know what that all means. We are promised to be rewarded for every good thing we do – maybe that’s it. Maybe on judgment day God will stand us on a pedestal and pin HIS medal of honor on us and everyone will recognize what we did for Him. Maybe instead of a medal it will be an actual crown of glory like a prince or princess would wear – signifying we are heavenly royalty. I don’t know – but I know it will be great. Think about the great and precious promises God has given us when you are struggling and discouraged.
God promised us His love; His Home and Heavenly glory. Think on these things. It will be worth it. Choose joy! Choose love! Choose Jesus!
If you are struggling this morning, let’s go to Him for encouragement right now.
Dear Jesus,
I am struggling right now. I am a little discouraged and spiritually down. Please restore to me the ‘joy of salvation’. Forgive me for any sin that may have separated me from you. Forgive me for not being faithful. Wash me clean right now. Turn my heart and mind to you. Help me to think on the positive things. Help me to remember you wonderful promises. Put a song in my heart, a smile on my lips, and a spring in my walk. Help me to joyfully do your will.
