Overcoming discouragement (2)

To overcome discouragement, you need to do two things. (1) Speak the right words. One of the main causes of discouragement is negative self-talk. In his book Spiritual Depression, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, one of Britain’s finest heart surgeons, wrote, “Most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself.” By that he means we allow negative messages from our past to affect our thinking instead of actively telling ourselves good things that will assist us in thinking more positively (see Philippians 4:8). Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain [problem], ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says” (Mark 11:23 NKJV). Words are powerful. They can reinforce your fears or strengthen your faith. The choice is yours. (2) Maintain the right expectations. Clergyman J. Wallace Hamilton once observed, “Every person’s life is a diary in which he or she means to write one story and is forced to write yet another.” Haven’t you found that to be true in your own experience? So often, life turns out differently from what you planned. But here is the good news: The story you write can actually be better than the one you imagined—but you need to have the right expectations. Bill and Gloria Gaither wrote the uplifting song lyrics, “I anticipate the inevitable, supernatural intervention of God. I expect a miracle!” What are you anticipating? Before you answer that question, pick up the Bible and see what God has promised you—then claim it!