Topic : Disciplines

God sometimes allows us to enter into discouraging situations for the primary purpose of testing our faith. At such times we must refuse to give up in despair. Like Jonah in the belly of the great fish, we must turn to the Lord when our soul is fainting within us, trusting Him completely. James H. McConkey wrote, "What can you do when you are about to faint physically? You can't DO anything! In your weakness you just fall upon the shoulders of some strong loved one, lean hard, and rest until your strength returns. The same is true when you are tempted to faint under adversity. The Lord's message to us is "Be still, and know that I am God? (Psalm 46:10). Hudson Taylor was so feeble in the closing months of his life that he said to a dear friend, "I'm so weak that I can't work or read my Bible, and I can hardly pray. I can only lie still in God's arms like a little child and trust.? And that is all the Heavenly Father asks of you when you grow weary in the fierce fires of affliction.'

Our Daily Bread, Monday, March 26.

If you aren’t practicing, someone else is.

In the 1880s a young man who was an earnest Christian found employment in a pawnshop. Although he disliked the work, he did it faithfully “as unto the Lord” until a more desirable opportunity opened for him. To prepare himself for a life of Christian service, he wrote on a scrap of paper the following resolutions:

“I do promise God that I will rise early every morning to have a few minutes—not less than five—in private prayer. I will endeavor to conduct myself as a humble, meek, and zealous follower of Jesus, and by serious witness and warning I will try to lead others to think of the needs of their immortal souls. I hereby vow to read no less than four chapters in God’s Word every day. I will cultivate a spirit of self-denial and will yield myself a prisoner of love to the Redeemer of the world.”

That young man was William Booth, who later led thousands to Christ and founded the Salvation Army.

Our Daily Bread, June 28, 1989

Two little teardrops were floating down the river of life. One said to the other, “Who are you?”

Said the other, “I’m a teardrop from a girl who loved a man and lost him. Who are you?”

“Well, I am a teardrop of the girl who got him.”

• After Fred Astaire’s first screen test, a 1933 memo from the MGM testing director said: “Can’t act. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.” Astaire kept that memo over the fireplace in his Beverly Hills home.
• An expert said of famous football coach Vince Lombardi: “He possesses minimal football knowledge. Lacks motivation.”
• Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women, was advised by her family to find work as a servant or seamstress.
• Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him hopeless as a composer.
• The teacher of famous opera singer Enrico Caruso said Caruso had no voice at all and could not sing.
• Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper for lacking ideas. He also went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland.
• Eighteen publishers turned down Richard Bach’s 10,000 word story about a soaring seagull before Macmillan finally published it in 1970. By 1975, Jonathan Livingston Seagull had sold more than seven million copies in the U.S. alone.”

Taken from Chicken Soup for the Soul: 101 Stories to Open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit, written and compiled by Jack Canfield and Mark V. Hansen.

• Countdown! Golden Minutes Ministries, October, 1977

If we read the discouraging circumstances of life—the people who do us in, the job that doesn’t work out, and the other struggles that seem to engulf us—we will surely crash.

But if we would keep our eyes on Jesus Christ and stay grounded in His word, then we will make it safely through the storm.

Maybe you’re in a storm. God has a purpose in leading you into the storm. He has power to preserve you through the storm. And, He has a plan to eventually lead you out of the storm. Put your eyes on Christ. Trust His Word.

When All Hell Breaks Loose (You May Be Doing Something Right), Steven J. Lawson, NavPress, Morning Glory, July-August 1995, p. 27.

Everywhere the perpetual endeavor of the enemy of souls is to discourage. If he can get the soul “under the weather,” he wins. It is not really what we go through that matters, it is what we go under that breaks us. We can bear anything if only we are kept inwardly victorious...

If God can make His birds to whistle in drenched and stormy darkness, if He can make His butterflies able to bear up under rain, what can He not do for the heart that trusts Him'

Amy Carmichael in Learning of God

Former heavy-weight boxer James (Quick) Tillis is a cowboy from Oklahoma who fought out of Chicago in the early 1980s. He still remembers his first day in the Windy City after his arrival from Tulsa. “I got off the bus with two cardboard suitcases under by arms in downtown Chicago and stopped in front of the Sears Tower. I put my suitcases down, and I looked up at the Tower and I said to myself, ‘I’m going to conquer Chicago.’ “When I looked down, the suitcases were gone.”

Today in the Word, September 10, 1992

I refuse to be discouraged, to be sad, or to cry;
I refuse to be down-hearted, and here’s the reason why:
I have a God who’s mighty—who’s sovereign and supreme;
I have a God who loves me, and I am on His team.
He is all-wise and powerful—Jehovah is His name;

Though everything is changeable, my God remains the same.
My God knows all that’s happening—beginning to the end;
His presence is my comfort; He is my dearest Friend.
When sickness comes to weaken me—to bring my head down low;

I call upon my mighty God; into His arms I go.
When circumstances threaten to rob me of my peace,
He draws me close unto His breast where all my strivings cease.
When my heart melts within me, and weakness takes control,
He gathers me into His arms—He soothes my heart and soul.

The great “I AM” is with me—my life is in His hand;
The “God of Jacob” is my hope; it’s in His strength I stand.
I refuse to be defeated—my eyes are on my God;
He has promised to be with me as through this life I trod.

I’m looking past all circumstance to Heaven’s throne above;
My prayers have reached the heart of God—I’m resting in His love.
I give God thanks in everything—my eyes are on His face;
The battle’s His, the vict’ry mine; He’ll help me win the race.

Lita Kurtzer, Zion’s Fire, March-April, 1992

The American painter, John Sargent, once painted a panel of roses that was highly praised by critics. It was a small picture, but it approached perfection. Although offered a high price for it on many occasions, Sargent refused to sell it. He considered it his best work and was very proud of it. Whenever he was deeply discouraged and doubtful of his abilities as an artist, he would look at it and remind himself, “I painted that.” Then his confidence and ability would come back to him.

Bits and Pieces, September 19, 1991, p. 9

Discouragement is dissatisfaction with the past, distaste for the present, and distrust of the future. It is ingratitude for the blessings of yesterday, indifference to the opportunities of today, and insecurity regarding strength for tomorrow. It is unawareness of the presence of beauty, unconcern for the needs of our fellowman, and unbelief in the promises of old. It is impatience with time, immaturity of thought, and impoliteness to God. - William Ward.

Today in the Word, April, 1989, p. 18

Plough Ahead

Pay as little attention to discouragement as possible. Plough ahead as a steamer does, rough or smooth, rain or shine. To carry your cargo and make port is the point.

Maltbie Babcock, in Bits and Pieces, June, 1990, p. 12