“For we know that the
Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for
I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very things I
hate. But if I do the very thing that I
do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but
sin which dwells in me” (Romans 7:14-17).
So describes my battle with discouragement!
Hey Gang: I confess I
have spent a lot of time lately with the Apostle Paul, for I find myself doing
the thing that I hate far too much. The
past eight years have been very hard on this old man and the run up to the
election was especially difficult. I
have found myself in a constant battle with discouragement and depression. O, not of the real deep seated dangerous
type, but deep enough that I have to constantly remind myself that the “Battle
is the Lords” and His “joy is my strength”.
I have finally bitten the bullet and have started to cull
out some of the accumulated piles of materials from my past and came across this
old story that kind of ties into the Scripture of the morning and my constant
battle with my battle with discouragement.
It was advertised that the devil was going to put his tools
up for sale. On the date of the sale the
tools were placed for public inspection, each being marked with its sale
price. There were many implements:
hatred, envy, jealousy, doubt, lying, pride, and so on. Laid apart from the rest of the pile was a
harmless- looking tool, well-worn and priced very high.
“What is the name of that tool?” Asked one of the
purchasers. “Oh”, said the adversary,
“That’s discouragement.” The purchaser asked,
“How come the price is so high?” His
response, “Because it’s more useful to me than all the others. I can pry open and get inside a person’s
heart with that one, when all else fails and once I get inside, I got ya! It’s a badly worn because this is the day
of discouragement and few people really know that it belongs to me.”
How about you? Have
you ever been discouraged? How many know
that being legal guardian for a barn full of young folks who came to me because
they did not make good decisions, herding a staff of equal size and being
concerned constantly that there would be enough gold in the coffers to pay the
liabilities of the day, might have some discouraging opportunities. But I do not recall any time, in my tenure as
Exulted Eagle of the Village, when I was in constant war and my encouragement registered
empty, as in the past eight years.
But as a good friend once said when we were dealing with a
crisis at the Village, “Keep your head up for this, too, shall pass”. I thought when the election results were in
and God had spoken, you do believe that God places kings on thrones and removes
them, don’t you? We would bury the
gauntlets and take up our plow shares and work together to repair the
devastation left behind by the former resident of the White House. O, how wrong I was. I find it impossible to watch the news for
five minutes without feeling pangs of discouragement beginning to rage in my
heart and soul.
Paul had many opportunities to be discouraged but he was
locked into God’s support system. He passed
that support system on to us in I Corinthians 10:13 (with a slight
modification) “No discouragement will
overtake Me but such is common to all, and God is faithful, who will not allow
me to be discouraged beyond that which I am able to handle”.
There is a commonness in much of the news that is filling the
airways and it is not good news. Even those who are saying we will see a new
day dawn in the coming years under our new leaders but still, keep your powder
dry and ready for action is essential. I
close this epistle with verses that I pray will give you the power and strength
to be an overcomer, for Satan will surely be seeking ways to get into your
life. Remember he does not quit, he
just awaits until a more opportune time to harass you. (“Luke 4:13).
In Isaiah 43:2-3 God gives us an assurance that we can take to the bank “When you pass through the waters, I will
be with you, and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not
be scorched, nor will the flame burn you. For I am the Lord your God, The Holy
One of Israel, your Savior”.
And again in Joshua 1:9 He gives us the tools to be an overcomer “Have I not commanded you? Be
strong and courageous! Do not tremble or
be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go”.
There are many
power verses throughout the Word, seek them out and get them firmly planted in
your heart, mind and soul. You will
surely need them in the coming days, weeks, months and even years.
Blessings,
Gramps
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