Don’t Lose Heart!!

Text:  Psalms 27: 13, 14          James 1: 1-3      Hebrews 12: 1-3

I would have lost heart if I had not believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.  Wait on the Lord; be of good courage and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord.  Psalm 27: 13, 14

 

Don’t give up!!  In the world of today the struggles seem unending.  When does it ever get easier?  We say that by this time in my life I should be running on cruise control.  By this time I should have been married for 15 or 20 years; enjoying my impending retirement or my children grown and all well adjusted.  Unfortunately for most of us, life happened!!  Jobs were lost, careers devastated by a weak economy or even weak economic growth, husband or wives left us or our children have become rebellious and disobedient.  This is not a new thing.  It has been happening through all of history so don’t be so surprised now that it has also hit your household.  But the Word of God tells us not to give up; It tells us to keep believing even when things seems so bleak and darkness seems to be in every corner just waiting for its chance to pounce on us!  The Word of the Lord in the above referenced text tells us that the psalmist knows he would have become depressed, given up, and let go if he had not believed in his heart that the Lord would deliver Him out of the mess he found himself in.  So, what do we do in such a situation?  We WAIT. Ah, but we do not just wait idly!!  We strengthen our hearts while we wait for our deliverance to come.  The Word goes on to tell us to wait and be of good courage.  It’s interesting to know that the translation for the word used for courage in this text means to strengthen; to encourage.  Encourage yourself when things look like they are falling into pieces around your feet!

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. James 1:2, 3

 

So, why in the world should I feel happy that calamity has taken over my life?   We need to remember that there is a final destination and a way to reach it successfully.  Consider this; a serious athlete will  not just get up off the sofa one day and decide he is going to run the Boston marathon and expect that he will successfully reach the finish line.  He endures months, maybe even years, of training before he subjects his body to such a task.  The word “patience” used here translates from the Greek as “endurance”.  We are sometimes so quick to blame the enemy for the “bad” things that are occurring in our lives when in fact it may be the Lord bringing you to a place of enduring faith  for a bigger and better task that lies ahead.  So, this is the reason we are admonished to “count it all joy” when these things show up in our lives.  Encourage yourself in the Lord knowing that He has bigger and better plans for your life, but you have need of endurance.  Do not be swerved from the path the Father has set before you.  Endure the trials with enduring faith!

Therefore, we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.  Hebrews 12: 1

The word “run” in this passage of scripture denotes someone who is currently in great peril and needs to exert all of his/her strength to overcome the circumstance.  The “race” that is set before us is actually a phrase used to show a struggle or battle.  So, in essence, the author is encouraging us to continue to patiently endure the battles and to use all of our strength to continue in our faith knowing that there is an end!!  A battle cannot continue on forever!!  There is a season to everything under heaven.

And He was withdrawn from them, about a stone’s throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying “Father, if it is your will take this cup away from Me, nevertheless not my will, but Yours, be done.”

 Luke 22: 41

Jesus knows what you are going through is hard.  He was saying to the Father here that it was difficult; so difficult that he would have liked to have been released from the assignment at hand if at all possible.  But, because Jesus knew that the ‘race” set before Him was for a greater purpose He was able to truthfully say He would endure the humiliation, pain and torture for the sake that the will of God be carried out.  Jesus understood that there was a greater purpose for Him in this “mess” that he found himself in.

Therefore, strengthen the hands which hang down and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.

The message above is to strengthen the hands that hang down and the feeble knees.  It tells YOU to make straight the path for YOUR feet.  Here we must recognize that we have a personal responsibility on our own to “pull ourselves up by the boot straps”!  It is not our pastor’s responsibility; nor our husbands/wife’s or best friends!!  It is our own.  Lift your hands to God, there is always a bit of strength left to raise your hands in Praise to Him.  If you refuse to do this there is a crooked path you will take that will again cause you to stumble again and fall.  Have you ever tried to walk on your leg when it felt like pins and needles?  Without realizing it you could find yourself on your face on the floor!  You may not be able to walk but you can start with praise or just a simple, quiet thank you.  Just stand for a moment and let the blood start to circulate in those weak knees; before you know it you’ll be taking baby steps!

So, let us not lose heart, give up, throw in the towel, become depressed…etc.  Now that you know the reason for the trials it will be easier for you to encourage yourself in any situation knowing that it is God preparing you for a greater purpose!