MORE ENCOURAGEMENT FROM COLONEL SANDERS ....NOT DISCOURAGEMENT!

DIS...OR EN...COURAGEMENT

It is so very easy for us to become discouraged. The vagaries of life with unexpected disappointment, pain, and suffering batter against the walls of our lives like hurricane driven waves. We hope and wish for outcomes that never seem to come to fruition.

It is then, at the point where the circumstances of our lives seem dire that the true test of our faith is waged. The enemy whispers in our mind words of fear, hopelessness, and regret. He bludgeons our emotions with the weapon of discouragement. Dis – courage – ment. He comes to steal our courage. If he can rob us of our will to hold fast to God’s promises, he can weaken our faith and eventually steal our power.

Ah! But we have a source of infinite strength upon which to draw if we but cry out for help. “For in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us” (Romans 8:37). The verse continues to enumerate all the circumstances and challenges. He will help us to overcome but how are we to access this power? Faith.

We all have faith. The question is what are you putting your faith in? Your strength, your talents, your circumstances, your looks? What is real faith anyway?

“Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction (evidence) of things not seen”
(Hebrews 11:1). To see how that looks, read the whole chapter, the ‘Hall of Heroes’ of faith.

Simply put, the antidote to dis-courage-ment is en-courage-ment found in the promises of His word and through prayer and the answers He gives us through it. We must be willing, however, to wait for Him to act, to tough it out, never losing hope or surrendering our faith to discouragement. “Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage, yes, wait for the Lord.”

We choose how we view the conditions we confront. The choice determines our experience and usefulness in this life. There is a simple formula for applying faith:
C + P = E. Circumstance (C) plus Perspective (P) equals Experience (E).

Who are you going to listen to? What lens will you view the circumstances of your life through? Abraham Lincoln said, “A man is as happy or unhappy as he makes up his mind to be.” We determine who we heed in our thoughts. Do you choose to entertain doubt, discouragement, fear or hope and certainty that God is working in our best interests?

“For I know the plans that I have for you declares the Lord. Plans for welfare and not calamity to give you a future and hope. Then you will call upon Me and I will listen to you” (Jeremiah 29:11-12).