____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ December 25, 1994 ____________________________________________________ Overcoming Discouragement by Lynn R. Wessel Everyone experiences discouragement from time to time. It has very ordinary, everyday causes such as personal problems, lack of results, inability to do what is desired, or the behavior of others. These and many other things can cause us to experience a loss of spirit and morale, to be disheartened. The very nature of discouragement requires that we overcome it. It is an emotional state that can lead us to spiritual ruin if allowed to continue. It is debilitating and its crippling influence can effect every aspect of our life. It weakens our ability to function as we should. Here are suggestions for effectively overcoming discouragement. PRAYER Prayer is effective in overcoming discouragement because it places us in God's care. It helps us have more trust in God and less in ourselves. David said, ``Hear my cry, O God; Give heed to my prayer. From the end of the earth I call to Thee, when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For Thou hast been a refuge for me, A tower of strength against the enemy'' (Psalms 61:1-3). Prayer also provides a divine source of courage and strength that are so desperately needed in times of discouragement. Paul told the Ephesians to ''...be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might'' (6:10). In answer to Paul's prayer concerning the thorn in the flesh, the Lord said, ''...My grace is sufficient for thee: for my power is made perfect in weakness'' (II Cor. 12:9). PERSISTENCE When we get discouraged our forward momentum is slowed and we even come to a stop in some things. The irony is that what we stop doing are the very things we need: studying the Bible, attending worship services, being in Bible classes, praying, socializing with other Christians, etc. Through all of these, God helps us gain strength. What should we do? In spite of the discouragement, we must resolutely and stubbornly keep on doing what we're supposed to do. Through persistence we can gain back the spirit and morale that we lost. By quitting we spite ourselves; by persistence we gain victory! In Galatians 6:9, Paul said, ``And let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.'' AVOID SELF-PITY Self-pity nurtures discouragement. Feeling sorry for ourselves just makes it worse. It tends to make us feel comfortable and justified in how we feel. The overall effect of self-indulgent sympathy is to be encouraged to be discouraged. There is a good lesson to be learned from Psalm 73. Asaph reveals that he had been discouraged and felt sorry for himself over seeming inequalities in God's providence. The wicked seemed so prosperous while the righteous seemed so disadvantaged. He said, ``But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling; My steps had almost slipped'' (v. 2). ``When my heart was embittered, And I was pierced within'' (v. 21), and ``Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure, And washed my hands in innocence; for I have been stricken all day long, And chastened every morning'' (vv. 13-14). Asaph avoided his near fall by overcoming his envy, bitterness, and misplaced sympathy. The turning point is in verses 16-17: ``When I pondered to understand this, It was troublesome in my sight, Until I came into the sanctuary of God; Then I perceived their end.'' When he was able to see life from a higher plane, Asaph shifted his pity to the wicked because of their pending destruction. By rising above an ``earthly'' view and seeing life from God's ``view,'' Asaph could understand that everything was under the control of God's eternal sense of justice. When this happened, his own relationship to God was kept in perspective and he kept on being righteous: ``With Thy counsel Thou wilt guide me, And afterward receive me to glory'' (v. 24). -- Via The Dewey Avenue Bulletin, December 18, 1994 ___________________________________________ Interruptions by Jason Moore Interruptions are not only a part of life, they are a necessary albeit an unpleasant part. The unpleasantries we can all enumerate. Whose supper hasn't been disrupted by an MCI sales call? Who hasn't been delayed in traffic or road construction (or flood, for that matter)? Who hasn't been engaged in conversation only to have some one cut them off just as they were making their point? We could all add to the list of daily interruptions that try our patience. Case in point, I've had to stop to answer the phone four times in the course of writing this article so far. But there are some benefits to be derived from life's interruptions. Interruptions sometimes will bring opportunities. A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and fell among thieves who, after stripping and wounding him, left him half dead. And ``by chance,'' the Scripture says, there came down a certain priest, and likewise a Levite, and a certain Samaritan who was on a journey (Luke 10:30-33). Opportunities, like interruptions, often come ``by chance.'' Perhaps that is because the circumstances which bring opportunities (the thievery, in this case) are ``by chance.'' Note that all three men who encountered the victim of the theft were interrupted. Two of the men even changed course. They passed by on the other side. The Levite even stopped to look on him, to rubberneck, before moving on. It is interesting however that the text says that only the Samaritan who stopped to be a neighbor had some place to go. He was on a journey (verse 33). Interruptions then can become opportunities depending upon our reaction to them. Some interruptions may even be providential. Jesus and the disciples withdrew to a deserted place to rest, only to be interrupted by the multitudes who followed Him there (Mark 6). Peter and John were stopped by a lame man at the Beautiful Gate as they were about to go into the temple (Acts 3). Paul's preaching efforts in Macedonia were interrupted first by the demon-possessed slave girl, then by her masters who saw Paul beaten and cast in prison (Acts 16). All three of the occasions above, and numerous others which could be cited, provided audiences for the hearing of the gospel. So perhaps we should revise what we've said about interruptions being unplanned, chance ruptures of our schedules. For sometimes they're planned by God. Interruptions teach us patience. Someone may interrupt you about something unimportant in your estimation, but it may be important to them. Have you not done the same? Could it not be that you'll need to call upon someone for help in the future and interrupt their schedule? Have you not interrupted another's conversation because you had something you thought so important to say? You may be the one in the stalled car holding up traffic tomorrow. Or the only job you may find someday to support your family may be as an MCI operator. So show some consideration for others in need. Jesus had to deal with interruptions. Jesus had important work to do. But He had time for the children. ``Suffer them to come to me,'' he said. Jesus had places to go. He was leaving Jericho headed for the consummation of His work in Jerusalem when blind Bartimaeus cried for Him. The crowd tried to silence the blind beggar. But Jesus ``stood still'' and called for him (Mark 10:49). Jesus had people to see. He was invited to dine with a certain Pharisee, Simon (Luke 7). The meal was interrupted by the woman, a sinner, who came and anointed his feet with her tears, and dried them with her hair. How would you feel to be singled out by someone of sordid reputation when in the company of some notable? The host was offended. Jesus was forgiving. Some of Jesus' greatest lessons and certainly greatest examples of conduct came when he was interrupted. It occurs to me how often we must interrupt God. We call upon Him when we need help out of some fix into which we brought ourselves. We miss the point of the trial or the blessing or the opportunity that He has given us and use it for our own selfish devices rather than for His glory. He speaks to us in His word and through His messengers and we cut Him off because we have other matters about which to think, other matters to attend, other opinions than His. We let sin come in and spoil our relations with Him. And yet He interrupts our lives only to help, to save. May we let Him trouble us more, and may we turn life's interruptions into heaven's opportunities. -- adapted Via The Harvester, November 27, 1994 ___________________________________________ "...The stone which the builders rejected, this became the chief corner stone; this came about from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes" (Matthew 21:42). ___________________________________________ "Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, according to the faithful mercies shown to David" (Isaiah 55:3). ________________________________________ Tri-State CHURCH OF CHRIST 1314 Montgomery Avenue, Ashland, Kentucky 41101 Sunday: 10:00 A.M. Bible class 10:50 A.M. Worship 6:30 P.M. Worship Wednesday: 7:30 P.M. Bible study evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (606) 325-9742 e-mail: tedwards@zoomnet.net Gospel Observer web site: http://www.zoomnet.net/~tedwards/go ________________________________________