SETTING YOURSELF FREE FROM DISCOURAGEMENT
1 Samuel 30 (Selected Verses)
July 2, 2000
Introduction
I. James (quick) Tillis
A. Tillis moved to Chicago
1. Chicago was a better area for boxing than Tulsa
2. He dreamed of becoming a heavy weight boxer
B. Tillis stops at Sears Tower
1. Puts his suitcases down and looks up at the tower
2. “I’m going to conquer Chicago!”
3. Looked back down and his suitcases were gone
II. Have you ever had anything stolen?
A. Dynamics of theft
1. Material loss
2. Emotional loss
a.) Theft is a violation
b.) Creates emotions to rise within you – Fear, doubt, anger
B. What about spiritual theft?
1. Too often spiritual theft goes unnoticed and unreported
2. Satan is a great thief
a.) The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy
b.) All of Satan’s work begins with spiritual theft
c.) Satan steals the small stuff first – Passion, love for others, thirst for the Word, desire for worship, joy of the fellowship
3. Satan’s object of choice
a.) Material possessions is not Satan’s goal, material possessions don’t really matter to him
b.) He wants to steal your faith – He’ll use anything he can to do it
c.) His number one tool to steal your faith is discouragement
Body – Overcoming Discouragement
I. David needed strength
A. David and his men lost everything
1. All of their material possessions were gone or destroyed
2. Their families were taken captive
3. They fell into despair – Ultimate form of discouragement
B. David becomes distressed
1. Discouragement and despair always seek a target
2. The men find their target in David
3. David becomes distressed – Talk of stoning would do that to a person
C. David found strength in God
1. God supported David in his distress
2. God’s strength began when David’s was at an end
D. Lesson: God will renew your strength
But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
1. There will be times when we feel distressed
a.) Situations we can’t control
b.) People we love being lost
c.) When the seams of life begin to come apart
2. Don’t give in to target finding
a.) Don’t place the blame for problems on other people
b.) Don’t allow people to blame you for their problems
c.) Don’t blame yourself for problems
3. Strength comes from God
a.) Learn from David – Find your strength in God
b.) How do you gain God’s strength – Admitting that you are weak
c.) God’s strength begins when yours is at an end
d.) This requires FAITH
II. David needed guidance
A. David seeks God’s guidance
1. In his distress, David needed to know the proper course of action
2. David sought God for direction
3. David did not take action until God gave the guidance
B. David follows God’s direction
1. David first seeks God and then follows
2. David was willing to go out on a limb with God
C. Lesson: God will regulate your life
1. God can guide you through life
a.) God runs the entire universe – He can help guide your life
b.) We need His guidance
1.) How many times do we go out on our own without God leading the way? What is usually the result?
2.) We need God to direct us all the way
c.) The condition for God to guide is that you seek
You’re wrong but the time is right: God says No
You’re right but the time is wrong: God says Slow
You’re right and the time is right: God says GO! - Bill Hybels
2. When God guides, we need to follow
a.) God has a plan and purpose for your life – You need to follow Him
b.) Don’t ask God to lead you unless you’re willing to follow
c.) This requires PRAYER
III. David needed to retrieve his stolen property
A. David finds the raiding party
1. David takes only 400 men – 200 stay behind with the supplies
2. David finds the slave and gets the location of the raiding party
3. David battles and defeats the raiding party
B. David recovers all that was lost
1. David finds everything that was lost
a.) Families are unharmed
b.) Livestock and possessions were safe
2. David recovers more than what was lost
a.) David not only recovers things lost but also a large plunder
b.) David had so much that he gave some of it away to other people
C. Lesson: God will return your stolen property
1. Following God requires action
a.) When God guides He expects us to follow
b.) It is impossible to follow God by staying in place
1.) Following God requires change
2.) Stop stewing and start doing
3.) God wants to move us to action
2. God will help return your stolen life
a.) We all have stolen property in our lives
1.) It is Satan’s first strategy of destruction
2.) This comes in different forms
i.) Family and friends who are lost
ii.) Situations that take a major toll on you
b.) God’s message is clear: don’t give up!
c.) This requires OBEDIENCE
IV. David rewarded all the troops the same
A. David recognized the work was done by God
1. God won this victory, not David
2. God got the credit and the glory
B. David rewarded everyone the same
1. Every man received an equal share of the reward
2. This was a team victory
3. Every person had a role to play
C. Lesson: God will reward your faithfulness
1. God will pour blessings into your life
a.) If we believe, God will give us strength
b.) If we pray, God will give us guidance
c.) If we obey, God will give us victory
2. God will reward you with even more
a.) David returned with a great plunder
b.) God has a life of blessing waiting for you
c.) He will return what was lost and reward you with even more
d.) This is the result of faith, prayer and obedience
Conclusion
What has been stolen from you? Do you want it back? Do you believe that God can get it back for you? Have you asked Him to retrieve? Now is the time to reclaim your stolen property!
