This past week has been a real struggle for me. It’s amazing how you can be feeling great for a while, and all of a sudden you spiral down into depression. Just seven days ago I was feeling inspired, encouraged, strong, full of faith, and excited about my life and where it’s going. Two days later I was hit with a heaviness that brought me down so low I was struggling to get out of the bed in the mornings.
Unfortunately these low moments are not uncommon for me, so I know what I need to do. The first thing I do is PRAY. I truly believe God is my Creator and knows me better than I will ever know myself, so if there’s something going on with me I know He will reveal it to me. The next thing I do is PRAISE. No matter what is going on in my life, and no matter how bad I feel, I choose to give God praise – even if all I can say is “Thank You Jesus”. In tough moments like the past few days, I know my praise becomes a strong weapon against the enemy – who’d like nothing else than to discourage me and keep me down. I have learned that I find strength when I praise the Lord. I know He hears me and will move on my behalf to turn things around for good.
After a long talk with my sister last night, I realized I was seeing my circumstances from the wrong perspective. She helped me to see I was putting my focus on the wrong thing. I did some journaling after our call and prayed and asked God to help me see my life right; help me see things the way He sees them; help me see Him the way I should see Him. In my sleep and especially when I woke up this morning, the scripture “the joy of the Lord is your strength” repeated in my spirit. I went to the Bible to actually read the scripture from Nehemiah 8:10 and noticed there were three very powerful words that came just before it: DO NOT SORROW. So the full verse is “Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength”.
When I read the Bible, sometimes God will allow a specific word or phrase to jump out at me. This time it was the word sorrow. So I looked it up in the Webster’s dictionary and it’s defined as: deep distress, sadness, or regret especially for the loss of someone or something loved. Then the word distress jumped out at me, so I looked that up to. It means: pain or suffering affecting the body or mind. When God gave me Nehemiah 8:10 He was saying He knows exactly how I’m feeling, and why. I won’t share the details of my circumstances, but He spoke directly to it.
God also gently reminded me that I need to change my focus and see things the way He sees them. He is bigger and more powerful than anything I will ever face. He reminded me that no weapon formed against me will prosper (Isaiah 54:17). He reminded me that His plans for me are to prosper me and not harm me (Jeremiah 29:11). He showed me that what I’m going through right now is only a distraction to keep me from focusing on Him, and to keep me from remembering WHO I am and WHOSE I am. It’s a distraction to keep me from remembering all of the wonderful promises He’s made to me, and that I have a purpose and a destiny.
I believe that the enemy sends distractions because he knows God is getting ready to move in a mighty way. There are blessings that God has commanded over us and because His word cannot return to Him void (Isaiah 55:11), they will come to pass. There are things God wants to do in us, for us, and through us that the enemy does not want accomplished. So if our thoughts and energy are focused on our circumstances instead of the truth of who we are, he keeps us frustrated and depressed. But thank God that Jesus Christ defeated the enemy! That means we have the victory over everything the enemy throws at us. We can rebuke him in Jesus’ name. We can remember to keep our focus on the Lord, and choose to see things His way. And through it all, keep praying and keep praising Him!
Heavenly Father, I thank You for who You are. You are King above all kings and Lord above all lords. You are Almighty God and there is no one else above You. Thank You for loving us and keeping Your hand on us. Thank You that the enemy is forever defeated in our lives and we always have the victory through You. You have not given us the spirit of fear, but of love, power, and a sound mind. Keep us focused on You and help us to see our lives and circumstances the way You see it, in Jesus’ name. Amen
