Discouragement Is Not Distrust
By Kelly Mowrer
We can be "cast down" and discouraged; we can "feel" forgotten and forsaken--but we can still live by faith.
How?
Faith is not always having no sense of fear; faith is being afraid and running to the strong tower of the name of our God. "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10
"When my heart is overwhelmed - lead me to the Rock that is higher than I." Psalm 61:2
God leads us there--or we run there--or we are carried there by the encouragement and prayers of Godly friends. It varies.
We are not blind to the danger; we have a very real assessment of the trouble we are facing. Being victorious in trials doesn't mean being oblivious to them.
Don't be discouraged if you see someone who appears strong in faith and you don't feel like you're experiencing that same level of peace and confidence. Faith is manifested in different ways--it does not always appear uniform from one person to another, or one trial to another. Hebrews 11 lists a variety of different ways that people showed faith in spite of what they may have been thinking or feeling at the time.
Faith is not pretending that we feel better about something--that we feel no fear or no sense of being overwhelmed; faith is living apart from our feelings.
Faith is living based on the word of God, obeying it, accepting that He is there even when we don't sense Him--acknowleding that He is Soveriegn Lord of the Heaven and Earth and our life and our present circumstance--that He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
© Live at the Well.
Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and do not charge a fee. Any exceptions to the above must be approved by Live at the Well.
Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: By Kelly Mowrer. © Live at the Well.
We can be "cast down" and discouraged; we can "feel" forgotten and forsaken--but we can still live by faith.
How?
Faith is not always having no sense of fear; faith is being afraid and running to the strong tower of the name of our God. "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." Proverbs 18:10
"When my heart is overwhelmed - lead me to the Rock that is higher than I." Psalm 61:2
God leads us there--or we run there--or we are carried there by the encouragement and prayers of Godly friends. It varies.
We are not blind to the danger; we have a very real assessment of the trouble we are facing. Being victorious in trials doesn't mean being oblivious to them.
Don't be discouraged if you see someone who appears strong in faith and you don't feel like you're experiencing that same level of peace and confidence. Faith is manifested in different ways--it does not always appear uniform from one person to another, or one trial to another. Hebrews 11 lists a variety of different ways that people showed faith in spite of what they may have been thinking or feeling at the time.
Faith is not pretending that we feel better about something--that we feel no fear or no sense of being overwhelmed; faith is living apart from our feelings.
Faith is living based on the word of God, obeying it, accepting that He is there even when we don't sense Him--acknowleding that He is Soveriegn Lord of the Heaven and Earth and our life and our present circumstance--that He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords.
© Live at the Well.
Permissions: You are permitted and encouraged to reproduce and distribute this material in any format provided that you do not alter the wording in any way and do not charge a fee. Any exceptions to the above must be approved by Live at the Well.
Please include the following statement on any distributed copy: By Kelly Mowrer. © Live at the Well.