Recovering From RuinsSample

Be Encouraged In The Lord

The Philistines rejected David and his men to fight alongside them (1 Samuel 29). David and his men headed back to their tent in disappointment. Upon arrival in Ziklag, they saw the Amalekites had invaded their homes, burned them to the ground, and taken their wives and children captive. They wept until they had no more strength to weep (1 Samuel 30:4). Finally, David’s men decided David had to pay with his life for their collective loss.

Amid this devastating situation, David’s reaction should be an example to us; he encouraged himself in the Lord. David had a breaking point; he wept over his loss but did not stay crying. David’s men looked up to him; they needed answers and encouragement. Maybe David had always provided all the solutions in the past. However, this time around, David also needed encouragement and answers. 

There are times when you have no answers for people that look up to you because you need encouragement and solutions to your problems. The only way to get back on your feet and recover from your ruins is to encourage yourself in the Lord during such moments. As with David, encouragement wasn’t going to come from his friends or loyalists. Instead, he had to encourage himself in the Lord. This encouragement did not happen because he knew what to do. That would be encouraging himself in himself or encouraging himself in his wisdom. Instead, David’s motivation came from his knowledge of the Lord. When we encourage ourselves in the Lord, we do not deny the existence of our reality, but we are confronting defeat with our knowledge of a better truth. This truth is that our God is bigger than what is against us.

Maybe you’ve reached your breaking point as a result of the loss you’ve suffered. Perhaps you have always been “superman” to everyone, but they can’t see you need help too. It hurts when we consistently attend to the needs of others, but no one listens to our own needs. It is okay to weep, but don’t remain in this state. Instead, be encouraged in the truth that God in His mercy can make a way of recovery for you. You can recover, and you will recover from your ruins, be encouraged in the Lord.

Prayer 

Father, please give me the grace to lean on you consistently. Amen.