Causes of Discouragement and Biblical Help
On the surface, the causes of discouragement aren’t readily apparent. But is that really true? If your hair was on fire, you’d find the nearest spigot or shower. When feeling discouraged, your goal is to find the best solution.
What is discouragement?
Day after day and month after month life grinds away at your resolve. Brief moments of discouragement fuel thoughts about how to live a Christian life surrounded by heinous sins. Despair slips in a little at a time and then gangs up. A heavy feeling just won’t go away. You want to hide and trusting God flees. Courage dwindles and you wallow in misery.
On certain days, the smallest events seem to have the greatest impact. A sideways glance from a friend, crushing words, and an empty inbox cause your emotions to tailspin. Then, your imagination runs wild recounting the what-ifs of life so you feel hopeless.
God has a game plan to neutralize discouragement so don’t give up!
Causes of Discouragement: And What to do
When life happens and it’s exceedingly unfair and cruel, feelings travel at warp speed, and discouragement sets in. We’re emotional beings and God made us that way.
Emotions shouldn’t guide you but sound an alarm to let you know what controls your heart. Simply stated, feeling an overwhelming sense of discouragement means your trust level is lower than it should be.
Your emotions are one of the tools Satan uses to derail Christians. He uses fear to suffocate faith so you believe you won’t make it. He induces discouragement through your thoughts that you won’t survive the onslaught of ungodly behavior you step around every day. Satan knows which battle plan to use so you become battle-weary. He’s a relentless spiritual enemy. After a while, our sinful natures start to believe him.
What’s the good news? Don’t open the door to discouragement. When you get that “my soul is just above my toes feeling”, shift gears. Get in Satan’s face and resist him. Create some noise so he backs away.
Learn the Causes of Discouragement and Combat It
You have an adversary but a more powerful friend lives inside you, the Holy Spirit. He’s your personal guide when discouragement overloads your emotions, senses, spirit, and body. The Holy Spirit stays on call even when you lose sight of Him. And meditate on bible verses about discouragement like these.
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand (Isaiah 41:10).
When you get that weak in the knees feeling and spiritual energy ebbs, do this.
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed (Hebrews 12:12-14).
Give yourself a spiritual kick in the pants—a jumpstart. Start spitting scripture out of your mouth. Praise God with everything you have. Watch discouragement leave. Watch boldness return. Jesus said you could overcome the enemy. He even died so you could. And remember this . . .
When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all (Psalm 34:17-19).
Continue to anchor your spirit and build up your faith until courage returns. Do this every day.
More Scriptures on Discouragement: Load Up on Fresh Ideas from God
At Writing for JESUS, I always point readers back to scripture—a Christian’s lifeline. I’m doing it again, right now!
Joshua 1:9 – Haven’t I commanded you: be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.
Colossians 3:2 – Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Proverbs 4:25 – Let your eyes look directly forward, and your gaze be straight before you.
Ephesians 4:27 – Do not give place to the devil.
Philippians 3:13-14 – Brothers, I do not consider myself to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.
Psalm 37:7 – Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices.
Romans 12:2 – Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Sometimes victory from discouragement is as easy as getting back on board with God’s plan for you. You don’t even need to backtrack and figure out where you got off course. Just regain the territory Satan thinks he gained (he didn’t). God knows how to restore hope after Satan plants seeds in your head that God isn’t trustworthy (Read my book Bad Seeds). What Satan forgets is that NOTHING EVER separates you from the love God has for you.
For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities nor powers, neither things present nor things to come, neither height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).
Whatever you face in life whether it’s discouragement or something else, the Gospel message saves you. Once you learn the causes of discouragement, the Bible has all you need to overcome it.