The Unwelcome Visitor: Discouragement.

Joshua 1:1-9
1 After the death of Moses the Lord’s servant, the Lord spoke to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant. He said, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Therefore, the time has come for you to lead these people, the Israelites, across the Jordan River into the land I am giving them. 3 I promise you what I promised Moses: ‘Wherever you set foot, you will be on land I have given you—4 from the Negev wilderness in the south to the Lebanon mountains in the north, from the Euphrates River in the east to the Mediterranean Sea in the west, including all the land of the Hittites.’ 5 No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you.
6 “Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them. 7 Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do. 8 Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

So Christmas has been long gone for a month now. Do you know what typically follows the holiday season? Depression, hurt, etc. A lot of it is probably a direct result from having to pay off the sky high holiday debt. Nowadays as you know, Christmas is such a commercial holiday. We often leave God on the backburner as we go shopping. Then, we wind up in a whirlwind of trouble and distant from God, until we really need him.

Late January is statistically the most depressing time of year. If you find this true in your life, read about it in the Bible. The Bible is meant to coach you through things as you need it. While as a Christian the Bible should be read regularly, you can customize your reading by choosing topics, which a lot of times is what I do on here. (There is usually a topical index that provides scripture on virtually any topic that you can think of. If not, go to biblegateway.com).

Is discouragement dwelling in you right now?

I pray that the Word of God will lift your spirits...to erase at least some of your despair. Maybe you're not upset about your holiday spendings, maybe it's just the poor economic situation. This turmoil has happened before, so we will get through it. I promise. In the meantime, seek help from God. Keep a firm relationship with him so that discouragement doesn't have such an impact.

“The Christian life is not a constant high. I have my moments of deep discouragement. I have to go to God in prayer with tears in my eyes, and say, 'O God, forgive me,' or 'Help me.'” ~Billy Graham