Three Stages of Discouragement:

1. Mild - minor problems which affect our emotions.

2. Strong - major problems that affect our spirits so others notice.

3. Disabling - overwhelming problems or pressures which drain us of spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical strength. We lose desire, energy, or ability to go on.

- Lies from Satan. Fear, unbelief, bitterness, self-pity, or condemnation are all based on Satan's lies.

- The Root Cause -- putting down the shield of faith - Eph 6:16

When we lose sight of God's ways or our resources in Christ, we remove our spiritual protection.

The Benefit of Discouragement

- It confirms our need for God

- It destroys our delight in temporal things - Phil 3:7-11

- It destroys our confidence in the flesh - our own human effort - Romans 7:22-24

-Through our weakness His strength is made perfect - 2 Cor. 12:9-10

1. Remove any guilt

Through repentance and confession. Past failures can get you down. We must face them, confess them, change our behavior, and trust in God's forgiveness.

2. Take up the shield of faith

Ephesians 6:16 "...taking up the shield of faith...to quench the fiery darts of the wicked one."

How? By Quoting God's truth when we recognize Satan's lies.

3. Encourage our hearts in the Lord

Gal 6:9 "...we will reap if we faint not."

How to encourage your heart: - meditate on God's Word.

i.e. Discouraged by Quote

Failure and sin Psalms 32, 51

Rejection by friends Psalms 35, 55

Slander against us Psalms 38, 59

4. Get alone with God

You need personal time with God so He can speak to your heart - a time away from all distractions.

5. Get away from fearful people

A fearful person will spread his fear among others and make them fearful.

6. Read biographies of great Christians

Every person God has ever used mightily has gone through times of great struggle and discouragement. You will find this in biblical examples and throughout Christian History.

7. Avoid making major decisions during times of discouragement

Satan will arrange for pressure to get us to make major decisions during times of discouragement when we are not thinking clearly.

"Never doubt in the darkness what God has shown you in the light."

8. Let go of pride and confess your discouragement to trusted prayer partners

Don't try to act strong. You need other people's prayers. Humble yourself and God will give you more grace.

9. Focus on God's reputation

Whose reputation are you concerned about - yours or God's? If you are sure God has led you, you needn't worry. He will bring you through. We too often worry about what people will think of us. Put your reputation aside and do what God says to do. He can take care of His own reputation.

10. Focus on our position in Christ

- Consider what Christ endured in order to do God's will.

- Know your resources - because we are in Christ, we are able to enter into His victory over Satan.

11. Offer the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving

Recall His blessings and thank Him for what He has done.

There is power in praise. "God inhabits the praises of His people."

12. The principle of the birth, death, and resurrection of a vision

- God will give you a vision of what He wants done through us.

- He will allow us to experience the death of the vision (frustration in our efforts) in order to build character in our lives.

- He will then fulfill the vision supernaturally through us. We find strength and wisdom beyond ourselves.

13. Discern how God can use our problems or pressures for His good.

God takes us through adversity to bring about His purposes in our lives. Romans 8:28 Refer also to Joseph, Moses, etc.

"God will never use any man greatly until He has wounded Him severely." Tozer

e.g. Jacob wounded while wrestling with the angel. He became lame physically, but mighty spiritually. (His wound was directly related to his immediate problems.)