Life would be so much easier if we could get things at the snap of our fingers, but in reality that’s not how life works. Sometimes you have to wait for some time before you get the things you need or see your plans actualized. The wait could be for a few days, some months, a couple of years or it could even be in the distant future before you lay hold of your answer, evidence, blessing or testimony.
It’s easy while waiting for discouragement to set in. Proverbs 13:12 says hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. Disappointment, delay, unfulfilled dreams and expectations makes the heart sick; it makes discouragement brood and grow in your heart.
Hannah had been waiting for a child for many years. She got to a point where she was always crying about this situation. The situation affected her appetite. It affected her physical appearance. These are all signs of a wounded, troubled, discouraged soul. Hannah was in pain. She was hurting and discouraged. But Hannah refused to allow discouragement take over her life. Though she was discouraged, it didn’t stop her from praying.
One of the things discouragement does is that it weakens your desire, strength and resolve to pray. Of course, that’s exactly what the devil wants. To see you so discouraged that you can’t pray. Satan knows that when you pray, a testimony is being birthed in the spiritual realm. When you pray, you are drawing closer and closer to your breakthrough. Though Hannah got discouraged by some of the things her rival Penniah said and did to her, she never gave up in the place of prayer. She still continued to pray. Hannah prayed until she saw the fulfilment of her desire to be a mother (1 Samuel 1:1-20).
James 5:13 says “Is anyone of you in trouble? He should pray”. In other words, is there anyone of you in trouble and discouraged, he should pray! For that is how you will be delivered from that trouble, that is how you shake off and ward off feelings of discouragement, that is how God turns things around for your good.
When you feel so weak, heartbroken and distressed by the ups and downs of life that you can’t pray, remember that it’s better to say a short prayer than not pray at all because you can’t find the strength to pray for long. It’s better to pray in your mind than go for days without saying a word to God. It’s better to just sing praises to magnify God and lift up your spirit than not commune at all with God. It’s better to lie down before God and shed tears in His presence than not pray. In Psalm 56:8 at a time in David’s life when his spirit was low due to the trials and troubles that came his way, David said to God “You have numbered my wanderings; put my tears into your bottle; are they not in your book?” At times like this, when our words turn to tears, God still hears such prayers.
Say no to discouragement by not allowing the devil or any situation keep you silent and make you live a prayer-less life. It will only make you sink deeper and deeper into the valley of despair. If life has placed something heavy and hard on you, remember that there’s no burden too hefty for Jesus to lift. God didn’t go through all that trouble of sacrificing His only Son for you, only to not show up when you have needs less in value than the sacrifice of Christ.
Another way to say no to discouragement is to be careful with the kind of words and images you allow reside in your heart. Many times in the Psalms we see David speaking to himself, like in Psalm 43:5 where he said to himself “why are you downcast O my soul? Put your hope in God”. David told his soul, why are you discouraged, why are you behaving like there’s no hope, why are you acting like this situation is bigger than God? Put your hope in the God that can never fail, the God who can’t put to shame those who put their trust in Him. By speaking words of hope, faith and life to himself, David was able to come out of discouragement.
Don’t say or dwell on words that deflate faith and confidence. Feed on God’s faith-boosting Word and speak words that can rejuvenate and revitalize your body, mind and soul.
Don’t allow the seed of discouragement to incubate and take root in your heart. Don’t allow discouragement grow from a foothold to a stronghold. Say NO to the spirit of discouragement. Even when it looks like nothing is happening, nothing is changing, keep holding on to God in the place of prayer so you can draw strength from God.
God never said we wouldn’t go through dark, hard, rough and difficult times. What He promised us is that when such times come, He will be there with us (Isaiah 43:2) so we are not overwhelmed, crushed, perplexed, struck down or drowned by the waves of affliction and the storms of life. Right now it may look and feel like God isn’t there; you may not see God on the main stage, but there’s a lot He’s fixing, setting and directing behind the scenes.