Get Encouraged and Stay Encouraged!Chikamu

THE HABIT OF ENCOURAGEMENT

As we saw from David's story, it’s so important to get encouraged and stay encouraged! But here’s the deal: you can’t always count on someone else to encourage you. And you certainly can’t count on circumstances. No, each of us has to learn what encourages us in the Lord, and then practice it so it comes automatically when we need it.

That’s what David did. In the midst of trouble, he knew exactly how to encourage himself. When everything is hitting the fan is NOT the time to develop a habit of encouragement. No, you need to do that in advance, like David did. Develop a habit of encouraging yourself before you need it.

David spent hours in God’s presence, singing hymns and doing what encouraged and empowered him so that when trouble came, he was ready. He didn’t have to ask himself, “What do I do now?” He already knew. It was second nature to him to seek God, because he’d done it so often before.

So ask yourself: what encourages me? What helps me focus in on God and separate myself from overwhelm and discouragement? Is it certain verses in God’s Word? Is singing or playing worship songs? Is it a certain book that fills you with peace and power every time you read it? Whatever it is, practice it often! Have it at the ready. Make a habit of doing it regularly, like David did.

I’ll give you a little insight into how I encourage myself. If things around me look impossible or scary, trying to steal my joy and my peace, I go to a coffee house with my favorite ministry magazine and read it front to back. Sounds simple, huh. But it works. Every time. I emerge ready to fight the enemy and keep my joy.

Find out what encourages you and keep doing it! For you it might mean going to a park or walking on the beach to pray; sitting at the library with a favorite book; enjoying a candlelight dinner with worship music; taking the boat out to read the Word; or just finding a quiet place.

We can’t control our environment, or what happens, or how people act. But we can always control our response to it. And when we’re encouraged, we keep going. We reach out to people. We stay in faith. We overcome. Determine that staying encouraged is vital in your life and develop a habit to keep it.