Jump Start # 3835
1 Thessalonians 3:2 “and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s fellow worker in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you as to your faith.”
It was presented as a simple question. “How do you keep from becoming discouraged?” That’s a great question and I think the perception is that we preachers never get discouraged. Every Sunday, we are smiling, ready to roll, and seem to be filled with faith and fire. And, I wonder if that image deflates some. There are those who walk through the doors of the church building discouraged. Life is hard. Things are not going their way. Prayers seem unanswered. The journey appears to be all up hill and some are just tired. And, the preacher bounces in like Tigger the tiger and we are left wondering what’s wrong with us. Why can’t I be like that?
Truth be, we preachers do get discouraged. Sunday evenings, we can look like a balloon that has all the air let out of us. And, when you stand before people, be it twenty-five or five hundred, you’ll have those who love to be the critic. Typos are spotted and pointed out. Wrong words are caught and pointed out. Mix up of names are caught and pointed out. And, when one starts counting all the mistakes it makes them wonder if he ought to just give up. But, there are greater things that cause discouragement. People that do not want to move closer to the Lord. Those that are content to continue to make wrong choices. Those that say unkind things about the church and our Lord. Those that leave and will never come back. Sometimes there are so few that want to help out, while the majority sits on the sidelines of faith. Every congregation has bumps, problems and things that they can improve upon. And, when that is all one sees, the skies sure can become cloudy and dark.
A walk through Corinthians shows us that Paul was more than discouraged, he was depressed. So, the question really isn’t “how do you keep from becoming discouraged,” because you will. The real question is how do you keep discouragement from keeping you down and how do you keep discouragement from being a way of life?
First, the answer to discouragement is faith. It is always faith. Separate yourself from the problems, the issues and just pour yourself into the word of God. Daniel with lions. Shadrack with fire. Peter in prison. Abraham scared. Jonah in the belly of a fish. Paul beaten. Jesus mocked. My troubles are not nearly that bad. Reading Psalms is a great place to turn to when discouraged.
Second, focus upon what you can do. You can’t change the world. You can’t fix every problem. And, while you may be the only one, do what you can do. Have a few folks over for a Bible study or singing in your home. Have all the elders and their wives over for a dinner. Go visit a shut in. Send a card to someone else. When Elijah was hiding in the cave, depressed and alone, God told him to get out, eat and go appoint someone as king. Get busy doing things. Not only are you helping someone else when you do that, it helps taking your eyes off of yourself and your problems and brings joy as you pour sunshine into the life of others.
Third, from our verse today, get around others of faith. Timothy was sent to encourage the Thessalonians. Titus was sent to encourage a depressed Paul. When you don’t feel like going to worship, GO. When you don’t feel like going to a Gospel Meeting. Go. Getting around others will help you. It is when we are alone that our problems seem larger than what they are. It is when we are alone that we feel like we are out of hope and help. Being with others changes all of that.
Prayer helps. Jesus in the garden, facing His death, prayed. Pray about the problems. Pray about your feelings. Pray that the Lord will help you. Sometimes we get discouraged because we care. We may care more about the spiritual wellbeing of another person than they even care about themselves. We want the best. We want excellence. So, manifest that in you. Bring your best to the Lord. Do your best for the Lord.
We tend to remember complaints much more than compliments. Sometimes we can be the greatest cause of our discouragement. We expect perfection in ourselves. We beat ourselves up when things are not just right. How about extending a little grace to yourself once in awhile. How about not being so tough on yourself.
It helps to focus on faith and not problems. When you dwell upon what is not right, your heart sinks. You become discouraged. Feed your faith not your doubts.
Dick used to be one of our members here. He is now on the other side of life. He preached. He was an English teacher in school. He would call me, much too often for my liking, to remind me that in my writings I tend to go from singular to plural, and past tense to present tense in the same sentence. I’d tell Dick, “I guess I’m not supposed to do that?” He’d laugh and say, “NO.” But, he would in his sweet way tell me that he wished he could see the insights that I do when the Bible is read. He was trying to help me. He was kind.
Discouragement—it’s part of life. But, it doesn’t have to define you nor corner you. It’s not the street that you have to live on. Greater is our God than any problem we face. And, eventually, the sun does shine again!
Roger