Overcoming Discouragement
Steve Sampson

Discouraged people exert no demand on the presence of God.

And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their
lives to the death.  (Rev 12:11 NKJ)

The blood of Jesus is all encompassing.  All physical health, all mental health, all emotional health has been
purchased by the blood of Jesus.  His precious blood not only paid for our sins, but for every possible sickness as
well.  In fact, Jesus paid for our sicknesses with His blood before He paid for our sins.

“…by His stripes you were healed.”  (1 Peter 2:24 KJV)

He paid not only for our sins, but for our mental health.  His blood covers the oppression that comes against our
minds.  His blood covers those distorted emotions because of things we’ve gone through.  We don’t have to buy
unbelief, we don’t have to buy the lies of depression, we don’t have to succumb to anything, because the blood of
Jesus has paid it all.

The devil is a liar.  Presumably the most effective weapon he uses against the saints is discouragement.  There is
nothing more diabolical than those stifling feelings of heaviness that border on hopelessness.  But the good news
is that we have already been given authority over him.  The accuser of our brethren…has been cast down.  (Rev
12:10 NKJ)

Stop Trying To Defeat The Devil

You cannot defeat the devil!  He has already been defeated.  His time has already come.  He has been stripped of
his power and authority.  He only has the “power” to lie and oppress.  We have the authority through the blood of
Jesus to resist his lies, and to not buy the defeat he tries to sell us.

Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Col 2:15 NKJ)

A mistake commonly made by many Christians is that they are still trying to fight an enemy that has already been
defeated.  Nowhere does the Scripture tell us to defeat the devil, but rather to resist him, and to exercise the
authority that we have already been given over him.

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  (James 4:7 NKJ)

Gaining Strength By Resisting

But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while,
perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. (1 Pet 5:10 NKJ)

It isn’t always God’s way to rescue us from some type of persecution or suffering.  Sometimes He wants us to
simply walk through it.  As a result, He will perfect us, establish us, strengthen us, and settle us.

Frankly, resisting the devil is what makes us steadfast in the faith.

God has a far greater purpose for us as individuals than we realize.  He desires to make us strong in spirit.  Strong
Christians have gained strength by resisting the lies of the devil and by exercising their faith in God.

It is good to remind yourself when you are feeling satanic opposition and oppression, that you are worth being
resisted!  God has His hand on you!

Begin To Speak The Language Of Faith

Many don’t see victory because they refuse to embrace the language of faith.  Speaking the language of faith is
simply agreeing with God’s vocabulary, and not the devil’s.

It isn’t enough to know the promises of God and the goodness of God.  We must come to a place of choice.  We
can either stay in the rut we are in, or we can say “Enough is enough” and begin to speak what God says.

To be discouraged, God says, “Choose life”.  Begin to agree with God.  Rather than declare your circumstances
and what your emotions dictate, begin to declare the greatness of God!

It takes no faith (or character) to agree with your emotions.  Emotions change by the minute.  Anyone can declare
the negative.  Anyone can complain.  Anyone can let his mouth spew out what his emotions feel at that given
moment.  Many spend their entire lives letting their vocal chords record what their emotions feel.  But God has
given you and me a choice.

I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and
cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live;  (Deut 30:19 NKJ)

God will wait for you to get tired of the old habitual rut you are in.  He will politely wait, and not stop you from
wasting years.  You can let it be your choice to continue plodding down the road of discouragement and
despondency, and defeat.  Or – you can rise up in faith and begin to speak His language.  Without faith, it is
impossible to please God.  This is your choice. 

The language of faith agrees with God.  Faith declares God’s faithfulness, and declares everything else a lie.  You
must not be concerned about what natural circumstances dictate, because from now on, God is your source.  If
things get worse at first, it doesn’t matter, because God is seated on the throne of your life.  Because you have
begun to align your speech with His Word (speaking the language of faith), there will inevitably be results.

It is of necessity to repent.  Repentance is not shedding a bucket of tears, but it simply means – about face!  You
must make a quality decision such as, “I repent of agreeing with the devil’s lies, I am choosing to agree with God,
and speak His language.”

Whoever offers praise glorifies Me; and to him who orders his conduct aright I will show the salvation of God."
(Ps 50:23 NKJ)

Fear is abnormal.  God didn’t create us to live in fear.  Worry is abnormal.  God didn’t create us to live with worry.
Joy is normal!  Peace is normal!  The gospel is good news which dictates our standard of living.  Refuse to
embrace fear and worry and discouragement.  Embrace the promises of God!  It is your choice.

Most all suicides and suicide attempts can be traced back to the thought life.  A choice was made.  A person
began to entertain thoughts from the devil.  The more the thoughts were listened to and entertained, the more
thoughts the devil added.  Soon the thoughts multiplied until the person could no longer control his own thoughts
and tried to find a way of escape – by suicide.  The problem began
long before the suicide.  The problem began when the person began to entertain the lies of the devil.

God has given you and me authority over all the power of the enemy.

Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and
nothing shall by any means hurt you.  (Luke 10:19 NKJ)

Nothing Makes You Grow Faster Than Seeking The Lord

Human nature, including Christian human nature, gravitates to seeking the advice or opinion of people, rather than
God.  We find it easier to relate to someone we can see, rather than He Whom we cannot see.

Of course it is not wrong to seek out counsel and encouragement from other people, but true change and growth
comes when we seek the Lord.

Making an investment of time in uninterrupted prayer creates an unexplainable strength to the human spirit.
Finding another person to “unload” the problem on will bring a temporary support and relief, but will not necessarily
make you any stronger as a Christian, any more than you would gain strength by watching that person pray.

If You Are Resisted, Then Rejoice!

When the enemy of your soul resists you, it usually means one of two things.  Either you are on the verge of a
breakthrough, or you are on the right track with God and the devil is trying to discourage your efforts.

Rather than embracing discouragement, we can rejoice that the devil is worried about us.

No wonder James tells us to rejoice when we are going through trials!

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces
patience. (James 1:2-3 NKJ)

God is allowing trials to being forth a permanent result of character in your inner man.

It is similar to taking final exams.  Students usually complain when they are facing finals, but the exciting thing is
that if they pass, they will be promoted!  They will never again be “tested” in those areas. 

God desires to promote us. He wants to take us to higher and higher levels and dimensions in Him.  But no
promotion takes place without an exam.

Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life
which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.  (James 1:12 NKJ)

Promotion is on the way!  Be encouraged!