Message 17 July 2016 King David Series # Uplifting Self
Conversation
And David was greatly distressed; for the people
spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man
for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD
his God. 1 Samuel 30:6
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart
trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with
my song will I praise him. Psalm 28:7
We
live in times when all that it takes to
destroy ourselves is in place. You may immediately think of the nuclear weapon stockpiles. Not at all,
character erosion and a moral void are the greatest threats of our times.
Without sound character, moral perimeters, and positive values there is no
campus and no hope. The world has raised a generation that does not know where
moral boundaries are. We have made the cities and streets brighter and brighter
while human hearts have become darker and darker. Laws, policies and
institutions have embraced evil. The family unit has been destroyed. Marriage
has been redefined to accommodate unnatural sexual whims. The very things that
brought God's wrath on cities and nations in the Scriptures are common in our
day. Further there are too many angry people with no sense of restraint. They
allow their anger to boil over in violent ways to register or settle offense - the poor rising up against the
rich, the religious against those different and ethnic groups against each
other.
Beginning
with tribulations, Paul followed a logic that is very alerting about character
(Romans 5:3, 4). He said tribulation works patience, patience builds character
and character brings hope. And hope is not ashamed because of the love of God
in our hearts. Clearly in his perspective the basis for hope is character. Character is the foundation and guarantee of hope. In
our times the fabric of society has been torn to pieces. Ingredients for social
health such as righteousness, justice, mercy, truth, trustworthiness,
responsibility, love, and respect have been removed from the center and as a
result the center can no longer hold. (Galatians
5:19-20).
Respect
for life denied at any stage of human development opens grounds for violations
of life at any other stage. Millions are slaughtered before they see the light
of day. Such disrespect of life and its dignity is everywhere to show the
extend of moral debasement. People with weapons but with no character are a
danger to themselves and others. People with power and no character will abuse
the power to oppress the weak in pursuance of self-interest. Custodians of
justice who have no character will be bribed. Heads of families without
character will neglect or abandon their responsibility. Because of increasing
numbers of such to many the future is unsure. Also, the times are characterized
by overload of information, processes, stuff and chaff. Life can be tiring and
has many struggles to be overcome.
In
the midst of such adverse trends it's so easy to lose hope and be discouraged. Encouragement
is on high demand. In the context, encouragement is as vital as blood and oxygen
in a major emergency scene. When the thief comes to steal (John 10:10), he
doesn't priorities taking your physical assets
such as your car or cell phone. He aims for the intangibles first. Using discouragement he steals
your zeal, hope, joy, peace, and contentment. What the thief is after is what to guard most closely.
Discouragement
hits hardest when one is alone in quietness, private, up from sleep at night
and in thought. Moments when you reflect on your life and consider that you are
neither going or coming and seem over loaded, and over stretched. Stress hits
when the demands on you are more than your resources. When head winds overwhelmingly
pity your capacity. When disappointed by
those you expected to be encouraging. When hope is delayed the heart becomes
sick (Proverbs 13:6). Generally, encouragement is needed all the time. It is to
the human soul as oxygen is to the human body. Receiving it is as vitally
important as breathing. Every person thrives on it. In the face of a barrage of
discouragement, where shall encouragement come from? Let’s look at three
primary conversations that can be sources of encouragement.
Conversation with Others
Interactions
with other people have both potential for hurt and discouragement as well as
healing and encouragement. It is therefore every person's relational priority to
make sure you determine who comes close to your life. Do they light your fire
or extinguish it. Paul exhorted believers not to neglect meeting with each
other (Hebrews 10:25). His one reason for meeting was to encourage one another.
It is for one's benefit in view of end time challenging times any other reason.
The one basic take home from meetings of believers should encouragement. If
participants go away not encouraged or worse still, discouraged then the
meeting has failed.
Additionally,
positive interaction with other people brings exposure to examples of people
going or who have gone through what you may be going through. This is one big
way to find encouragement. Some models can also be known through reading and
watching stories of other people.
Further,
interacting with others also provides opportunity to encourage other people by
your testimonies, words and actions. Be an encouragement to others. Encouraging
others has a reverse effect to encourage you. It also solidifies
convictions that you will apply when you face similar situations.
Positive Self Conversation
External
encouragement is only effective when received by the recipients for use to
encourage themselves. Self-encouragement is therefore at the heart of all
encouragement. As in breathing, other people can facilitate but they cannot breath for you. They can put you on a
breathing machine but if you do not
respond they will disconnect you from the machine. They may do Cardiopulmonary
resuscitation (CPR), a lifesaving technique useful in many emergencies, in
which someone's breathing or heartbeat has stopped. Doing so may make the
difference between life and death but success depends on positive response from the one needing help.
Self-encouragement
is desperately needed constantly and happens through uplifting self-conversation. What do
you say when you sit down with yourself? Do you speak something encouraging to
yourself. Do you address yourself like Paul would say 'my soul rejoice/hope in
the Lord'. What is said by anyone or anything from outside is only harmful when
you embrace it and repeat it or endorse it to yourself.
Discouragement
is overcome by focusing on positive outcomes that can be or are going to be.
Not by understanding the process you are going through. Through a decision to
see and hear differently to catch a view of hope to hear hope. You can hear something from within saying as
to a pilot 'keep your belt fastened and hold your position soon you will be cleared for landing.' Encouragement
that ends with you however will come short. In fact self-conversation on your
own gives cause for people to fear for you. This being because self-conversation
is also two edged in that you can build yourself or destroy yourself. What will happen when you reach the end of yourself.
When your heart is overwhelmed who will you cry to. What will you look to and
hold to. There are times when all people are discouraging. Or they are trying
but you have heard it before and it is not going deep enough. You feel like no
one understands and you just want to shut out all voices. At that time your
voice to yourself better be encouraging or else you will be suicidal. At that
point many lose meaning of life and decide enough is enough it’s time to drive
over a cliff. That is why will power is not enough you need real
power as demonstrated by David in the next section.
Conversation with God
Conversation
with God is self-conversation where God is the moderator and resource. When
others have deserted you and in moments when you are alone you need something bigger
than you to fall on. A rock higher than you (Psalm 61:2). David had one. In 1
Samuel 30:6 he and his men found Zikag
where they lived destroyed and all children and women taken away captive. They
wept until they had no strength to weep. Crying can be therapeutic but it was
not enough. He looked to his comrades in arms and found no encouragement.
Instead they wanted to stone him for what had happened. Everything he could
hold on to was shaken but David had deeper reservoirs of strength. He
encouraged himself in the Lord.
And David was greatly distressed; for the people
spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man
for his sons and for his daughters: but David encouraged himself in the LORD
his God. 1 Samuel 30:6
David
encouraged himself in the Lord. He put his trust in the Lord. You may not know
everything about God but he has revealed enough to encourage you. When David was overwhelmed he stopped
listening to circumstances and tuned in to the circumstances.
You
also can stop listening to past negative experience and the size of your bank
balance. Self-conversation with God begins with meditation on God's word
(Psalm 19:14; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1: Proverbs 23:7). Whatever is abundant in the heart feeds or informs self conversation. The louder the voice of the word of God
and of the Holy Spirit and the quieter the other voices become the stronger and
clearer God's voice his will be. Shaking of other sources of hope is to remove
that which has no foundation so that encouragement can be founded on the word of
God.
The
enemy comes to steal joy, peace, zeal, and contentment. Using discouragement he
blind folds people to positive things and exaggerates the negative. He exaggerates
the worst in you relative to the best elsewhere leaving you despondent.
The enemy as in most news bulletins blinds fold you from what should encourage
you. As a result, when you look to the past you cannot see all the blessings of
God and are more aware of the wrongs, failures, regrets and hurts you picked up
over the years. As a result you get discouraged. With eyes open you would see
God's amazing faithfulness. When you
look at the present you fail to see the many opportunities and all you see are
the walls, giants and chasms that keep you away from God's blessings and
progress. As a result you lose heart. When
you look into the future you do not see the strength that is available to
tackle the challenges and obstacles on the way forward and higher. As a result
you despair so badly that you resent life itself.
The
sure source of encouragement is trust in God who made the heavens and the earth
from nothing. He will give you a vision for the future and a revelation that
you have strength in him to do what has to be done. He will give you as he did
to David a principle or instruction to guide you. You can rise from your ashes by fixing your
eyes on Jesus and declare that fatigue, hopelessness, despair, self-pity, depression,
doubt, and bitterness are not your portion. The peace of God will guard your
heart and mind in Christ Jesus (1 Peter 5:7, Philippians 4:6). Jesus came to make your joy full. He came give you encouragement. He gave you his character to guarantee your hope.
Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.
Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith
Life Center.
First Floor Dhando House,
66 Eloff Street Extension,
Village Deep,
Johannesburg,
South Africa
Other Notes:
David
and the Psalmists encouraged themselves by finding strength in God.
- · Be thou exalted, LORD, in thine own strength: so will we sing and praise thy power. Ps21:13
- · I will love thee, O LORD, my strength.The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. ps 18:1-2
- · But the salvation of the righteous is of the LORD: he is their strength in the time of trouble. Ps37:39
- · It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect. Ps18:32
- · The LORD is my strength and song, and is become my salvation. ps 118:14
- · But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me. Ps 22:19
- · Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength. Ps 31:4
- · Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy. ps 59:17
- · In God is my salvation and my glory: the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God. Ps 62:7
- · Blessed be the LORD my strength, which teacheth my hands to war, and my fingers to fight: ps 144:1
- · Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer. ps 19:14
- · The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD; and in thy salvation how greatly shall he rejoice! psalm 21:1
- · The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him. Ps 28:7
