More Than Conquerors

Part 2- But how do I overcome discouragement?

In my last post, we focused on discouragement. We said that discouragement is not from God. It is from Satan. It is one of his most subtle tools that he uses to gain control over our lives. We looked at what discouragement can do to us as Christians. If we allow discouragement to grow, it can take us away from God. We talked about some things that cause us to get discouraged in this life. So….how do I overcome discouragement? If I am “more than a conqueror”, then how do I conquer discouragement?

First of all, let’s define discouragement in everyday terms. It is the feeling we allow ourselves to get when life isn’t going our way. Maybe our prayers have not been answered the way we wanted them to be answered. Maybe we keep having setbacks in different areas of our lives. So basically, discouragement is actually about ourselves and our unfulfilled lives. One definition says that it is a loss of enthusiasm for something. But what causes us to lose our enthusiasm? Well….just like I said above, when things don’t go our way in a certain area of our life, we lose our zeal and enthusiasm for that area of our life. But when our spiritual life is the area where we are losing our zeal and enthusiasm, then we have to address it before we spiral. So what are some ways to overcome discouragement in our Christian walks?

To begin with, I want to ask myself this question. Am I being honest and real? I believe we all need to be honest and real about our struggles and weaknesses. We don’t need to continue to pretend like everything is wonderful when we are really torn to pieces inside. That will not help us. It will cause more discouragement. We have a church family who will embrace us if we open up and let them. Ask for the prayers of your congregation if you feel you are simply just hanging on by a thread. Or maybe you need to talk one-on-one with a sister in Christ about how you are feeling. This is where we need to be available for each other, ladies. We are all human and we need encouragement from each other, and sometimes we need to voice our disappointments and our feelings of discouragement to someone else. Who knows? They may be feeling the same way you do. Maybe together you can lift one another up. 1 Corinthians 12:26 says, “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.” We are all in this Christian race together. Let’s help each other along the way. And let’s not forget that sometimes in our weak moments, we may be able to help someone else just as much as they helped us. So be honest and be real. 

Next question for myself is, who am I focused on? When I am discouraged, where is my focus? It is 100% on myself. I am feeling sorry for myself. The Christian life is not all about me and what I want. It is about serving God and serving others to the best of my ability at any given moment. I have to remember my “why” for being a Christian. In a secular example, sometimes I have gotten discouraged in my career as a teacher. Things were just not going well in my classroom. The kids seemed disinterested no matter what I did. They were not progressing no matter what I did. I felt like a failure. And of course, I would go home discouraged. But….then I would remember my “why”. Why am I a teacher? Is it about me and how I feel? No! I am a teacher, because I love children and I love to see them become successful. I love to see the lightbulb come on when they finally catch on to something. My “why” for being a teacher is about helping children. When I redefined my “why”, I suddenly began to get new ideas just popping into my head of how I could engage them again. It is the same thing in our Christian walk. Why are we Christians? What is my “why”? Well look at Ephesians 2:10 and we see our “why”. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” We are here to do good works for others. And a part of the good work that we are here to do is to tell people about the gospel. It is not all about us. I mean, of course we want to go to heaven. We follow God because we want to be with Him for eternity. But getting discouraged will not get us closer to Him. It will inch us further from Him. Let’s turn our attention to helping others as best we can in whatever situation we are in. Let’s all remember Philippians 2:3-4, “ Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” I need to focus on others rather than myself. Then I may not have time to get discouraged. I have my Christian family to encourage and build up, plus I have people in my life all around me who are not Christians who need the gospel. Discouragement? Nope, no time for it.

Another question for myself, can my pain and suffering help others? This sort of goes along with the paragraph above about focusing on others. If I am having problems in some way, maybe I should use those problems for the good of someone else. Maybe my pain and suffering can encourage someone else and help them make it through their struggles. This should keep me from letting my problems distract and discourage me. I need to know that I am not alone in my struggles and I don’t want others to be alone either. Listen to Paul in 2 Corinthians 4:8-10, “We are hard-pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed—always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.” He told the Christians at Corinth what a struggle he and his entourage were having, but not in a discouraging way. He said, yes we have it rough, but we are not giving up! He said, we are not in despair, meaning we are not discouraged! He told them all of this to lift them up and to encourage them to keep the faith. Then in verse 15 of this same chapter Paul tells them why they endure what they endure. “For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:15) He says, we are doing all of this for you, Christians at Corinth! And then he says some of the most encouraging words to those Christians in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” Wow! Let’s not forget that these words are for us today, just as much as they were for the Christians at Corinth back then. I have told you all before that I love to make Bible verses personal for me. If I were to put my name into those verses to make them personal for me and talk myself through it, I would say, “Don’t be discouraged Greta. Your outward body and appearance is fading, but your inward spirit is being renewed every day. And you know that your problems here on earth are really not that bad, because they will end someday. Greta, don’t look at the things that are temporary here on earth. Don’t focus on all the bad things going on in the world, and all the problems in your life. Those are temporary. Focus on the eternal life that you will have with God someday. Think about all the people whose problems won’t end after this life. Think about all the people who won’t have eternal life. Focus on them and help them. This is what God told you to do, Greta Hoover!” This is how I get myself out of feeling sorry for myself. This is how I combat discouragement. So please, spend time in God’s word and in prayer. Make the scriptures come to life for you. Talk or pray through them. Make them become personal for you. This really helps me. Maybe it could help you as well.

So, let’s review! We need to be real and honest about our feelings, struggles, and problems. We don’t need to hide them and push them down inside. We need to turn to our church family for help. We need to remember our “why” for being a Christian. What should be our focus? Remember, it is not all about us. We are here to help and support others. Focusing on others will help us stop focusing on ourselves and our troubles. And…our struggles may help someone else to not feel alone. If we talk about our feelings and struggles with others in a positive way, it may lift them up and help them to be able to keep moving forward through their pain and suffering. Renew your mind with God’s word and with prayer. Use the Bible to talk yourself through your problems and struggles in whatever way works for you. Pray to God. Talk to Him like you would a friend. And…..always remember the reward that you have coming when this life is over. Stay focused on the fact that you will be with God for eternity. Keep that in the forefront of your mind at all times. 

And last, rest and relax when you need to. Do what you can do for the cause of Christ and then relax. Do I mean relax and do nothing? No! However, we have to rest our minds and God knows this. Give yourself time to rest in Christ. I think of Psalm 46:10, “Be still and know that I am God.” We can rest in the fact that God is in control no matter what we are having to go through on this earth. Believe it or not, I struggle with this one. I am always feeling like I’m not doing enough and I don’t allow myself to relax and rest. I need to relax and know that God is pleased with me. So do you. If you are doing all you can do for Christ, within your limitations, then let yourself rest and relax. It’s all good. We all have individual limitations, and God knows what each of us can do and can’t do. Know your limitations, work for the cause of Christ, and then give yourself time to rest. God is preparing heaven for us. 

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30  “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” Jesus would not have told us to rest in these verses if He didn’t mean it. He knows that we need to rest and relax sometimes. But notice, Jesus is addressing those who “labor”, which means those who work hard for His kingdom. He expects us to be busy and active in His church and for His church. However, He also knows our limitations and knows that we have to rest and relax in Him. We have to have balance in our lives.  Doesn’t reading those verses spoken by Jesus relax you?

I hope this helps you if you are struggling with discouragement. Life is tough sometimes but we are so lucky to be “more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)

Have a wonderful week! Thank you for reading! Love you all!

Are you in Christ? Below I have added God’s plan of salvation with scripture references. If you need help in understanding, please reach out.

God’s Plan of Salvation

If anyone ever needs help in learning the truth of the gospel, please reach out and I can help you or put you in contact with someone who can. Below is the plan that God has set forth in His word, for mankind to receive His grace that leads to salvation and an eternity with God in heaven. 

We have to hear His word. (Romans 10:17) 

Upon hearing the message of Jesus, we believe it. (Mark 16:16) 

Then, we confess Jesus’ name before men. (Matthew 10:32) 

Next, we repent of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Acts 3:19) 

Finally, we are baptized into Christ for the remission of our sins. (Acts 2:38, Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:16, Romans 6:3-4, Acts 22:16, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:26-27) After baptism, God adds us to His church. (Acts 2:47)

Then, we remain faithful in our commitment to Christ until death. (Revelation 2:10, 2 Peter 2:20-22)