September 5, 2006

And I looked and arose and said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people, “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”
--Nehemiah 4:14

In Nehemiah 4, the Bible gives us an account of a time when the children of Israel were debilitated by discouragement. They were halfway through completing the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, and discouragement attacked them with full force.

Now, since discouragement is contagious, Nehemiah knew he’d better do something before it spread like a cancer throughout the entire camp.

In the verses above, Nehemiah gave the children of Israel the cure for their discouragement… a truth that will free you from discouragement every time. 

Nehemiah knew he needed to take a time-out. So he got the Israelites together and said, “It’s time to regain your perspective and remember your great and awesome God!  Remember Him…look to Him…listen to Him!”

I can tell you there have been points in my life when I’ve been down and discouraged. And the cure has been to stop and remember all that God has done for me. In those moments, God Almighty has absolutely carried me through. 

And He will carry you, too! He’ll give you supernatural strength, even in the middle of a dark day…or the darkest night.

The Bible says, “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows” (Isaiah 53:4).  Jesus knows how you feel! He knows when you hurt… and He knows exactly what you need to carry you through. So look to Him today. 

WHEN YOU’RE TEMPTED TO BE DISCOURAGED, REMEMBER HOW MUCH GOD LOVES YOU AND ALL HE HAS DONE FOR YOU!