ENCOURAGE YOURSELF

• DAY 178
• FAITH FILE: DAVID
• SCRIPTURES: 1 SAMUEL 30:3-6 KJV

So David and his men came to the city, and, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. And David’s two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. And David was greatly distressed; for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD his God.

Quick question! What do you do when you go through life situations that are difficult and devastating? What do you do when everything turns upside down and your mind cannot even seem to comprehend it or find within yourself the ability to manage it? How about when things are not working the way that you expected them to work? Because that is the situation that David found himself in our text today.

He and his men left their homes to go to war with the Philistine king that took them in when they left Israel. But they were sent back because they were Israelites and the battle was against Israel. By the time they came back their wives, their children, their property, and their homes were all gone. All they had left were the ruins of a burnt-down city.

Discouraged and Threatened

Naturally, they mourned their loss. The Bible said they cried until they had no more power to cry. And just like anyone who is grieving, they needed someone to blame. So they turned all their frustration at David, their leader. “Let’s kill him,” they said, “he’s the reason we are in this mess. If we never left Israel to follow him our families will be okay by now, but we came out here to join him in a foreign country and now we have nothing and nowhere to go.” So not only did David have to manage his pain, he had to deal with the tantrums and death threats of mighty men, who were armed and trained for battle, so these were no empty threats.

You have to understand that discouragement can do anything to the mind of anybody. And discouragement comes when we find ourselves in situations where we do not know where help will come from. A discouraged man will make dangerous decisions that he will regret when he is restored to his senses. So David had to find a way to handle his discouragement and find a solution. So he turned to the only place courage and encouragement are found –he turned to God.

Encourage Yourself

Beloved, life can be discouraging, to say the least. Sometimes it can feel like an avalanche of troubles has been unleashed on you and you are struggling to breathe. In these times, do what David did and encourage yourself in the Lord. That means finding your joy, hope, strength, and confidence again in God. How do you do that?

1. Pray. Take all that tears to Jesus, cast that care on him. Pray away that despair or anxiety and let him give you peace
2. Read Your Bible. Go to the word of God to find Joy. The word gives courage and encouragement. One of the things I love about the bible is that I see my story represented. Someone in there went through what I’m going through and that brings me comfort. It can for you too.
3. Praise and worship God. This works every time. A praise and worship playlist is so effective when emotions are down and joy is low. It’s an auto joy booster for real.
4. Repeat. Sometimes, joy comes back in smaller doses than it left and it can be an emotional roller coaster ride or a swing; up now down the next moment, whatever the case, you can always keep repeating this formula and you will notice your joy, courage, and faith return until it is full.

Let’s practice that shall we?

Present before the Lord, that which is too much for you to bear at the moment. Pray in Jesus’ name.

Shalom.