Discouragement. How To Handle It.

We all experience discouragement from time to time, but how you handle discouragement, determines the next steps.

In 1 Samuel 29, David assembled the men to pass in review of the Philistine lords. David elected to pass in review last. The defection of David from Saul was a pivtol moment. David showed his loyalty to the Philistines which was appreciated by the Philistines. But the lords of the Philistines were upset that the Hebrews marched with the Philistines and they would have none of it.

Why? The Philistines concluded that David would one day revolt against the Philistines because they've all heard that proverb of how Saul slain his thousand but David his ten thousands.

Obviously, this was a reference of when David killed Goliath, the champion of the Philistines.

This was enough to be ejected by the Philistines.

It's discouraging to be rejected after you've shown complete loyalty. Not once did you break rank to betray they ones that accepted you, especially after you were the one responsible for the killing of their champion, Goliath.

David took his men and departed as ordered back to Ziglag.

However, there was a problem when they returned to Ziglag. The Amalekites raided the city, took the women, their sons and, daughters, but they didn't kill them. The Amalekites just kidnapped them.

The men wept until they lost the power to weep. The men of David were so upset that they wanted to stone David. However, David had enough sense to strengthen himself in the Lord.

David recognized that he was n a position of weakness and he needed strength from God.

Remember. How you handle discouragement, determines the next steps.

It's easy to give up. It's easy to quit and commit suicide. It's easy to yield to defeat. It's difficult to muster up the courage not to accept defeat.

David strengthened himself in the Lord and then he turned to prayer. In the OT, the ephod was one way to communicate with God to determine His will.

Because Saul disobeyed the Lord regarding the killing of the entire nation of Amalek, this disaster came about.

Nonetheless, this is the hand that was dealt David and the Lord gave David his instructions.

1 Samuel 30:8 (NKJV) "So David inquired of the LORD, saying, “Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them?” And He answered him, “Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

David didn't give up or give in. After the Lord told him how it will go down, David and his men were confident in what the Lord said. They didn't panic.

1 Samuel 30:17-19 (NKJV) "Then David attacked them from twilight until the evening of the next day. Not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode on camels and fled.

So David recovered all that the Amalekites had carried away, and David rescued his two wives. And nothing of theirs was lacking, either small or great, sons or daughters, spoil or anything which they had taken from them; David recovered all."

Sadly, we stay in the place of discouragement and refuse to be encouraged. We refuse to encourage ourselves and accept defeat. David did the opposite. He strengthen himself in the Lord. He turned to God in prayer, even in the face of his own men bent on stoning him.

Against all odds, he got from the Lord what the Lord told him.

“Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.”

Do what David had done.

Strengthen yourself in the Lord. Pray and seek the Lord.

When a door closes. When the Lord allows you to suffer loss. When you lose your job. When your marriage is on the brink of divorce. When your children go astray. When drugs, alcohol, and sexual immorality overwhelms you and takes you to a place of hopelessness.

When there's no way out.

Remember.

How you handle discouragement, determines the next steps.