Blessing English Emagazine July 2020 | Page 6

July 2020 | Page 06 Our impatience can lead us to discouragements. Nobody is perfect in this world. We were born into this imperfect world alongside imperfect people and when we die, we would leave behind an imperfect world. The only satisfaction that we gain is having fulfilled God's calling in our lives, bringing hope and comfort to the needy. When perfection comes, all the imperfection will go away. Let us fix our eyes toward Heaven and finish the race that is before us. 4) Loneliness Can Discourage Us 1Ki 19:10 - “...and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” Loneliness can set the stage for discouragement to play. Some want to be lonely in life while others are forced into loneliness. In either case, there is a high probability that we might be discouraged. God basically created humans as relational ones. The first and foremost is, our relationship with God. Then comes the earthly relationships of mother, father, brother, sister, friend, spouse, children and relatives. We also relate with the nature. But when Sin came into this world, all these relations got complicated, and now we are in a total mess. It is only through Jesus we can now relate to the Father and to our fellow human beings. Nevertheless, at times we may face loneliness staring at us. We need to understand the difference between loneliness and 'delusional loneliness.' Delusional loneliness is when we feel lonely although we are not alone. We forget that there are so many people who love us and cherish us. They may not be physically near us but we are close to their hearts. Elijah suffered from this delusion. He acted alone. He felt lonely. But God had kept others like him in different places and positions - 7000 people still had not bowed down to Baal (1 Ki 19:18); Obadiah served in the king's court (1 Ki 18:3) and there were hundred other prophets (1 Ki 18:4). Not aware of this, Elijah started to withdraw from the scene. www.bymonline.org Instead of dealing with discouragement, too many of us withdraw ourselves from the situation making it more complex. In spite of our discouragements, we should make ourselves useful to others especially the needy ones. A small gesture of love, a word of hope, a note of thanks will do tons of miracles for people. Relating to pet animals, birds, plants (if we can afford) is another way to deal with loneliness. Above all, we should never forget the fact that we are never alone at any given point of time. Jehovah Shammah has promised to be with us even to the end of this age. What a great comfort! People may come and go, but God always remains. He is the Rock of Ages! Amen! Alleluia! 5) People's Misbehavior Can Discourage Us 1Ki 19:2 -“ Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” All of us, at some point in our life have to face the hatred of the world. Jesus foretold this: “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you” (Jn 15:18). Hence, we should not to be surprised by it. It is human nature to seek acceptance from people. We expect dignity and respect. We want acceptance. We want love. But it is not possible at all times from all people. People may talk against us. They may disrespect us. They may criticize us. They may hate us. We cannot allow ourselves to be discouraged by every word that is spoken against us. Let us listen to the wise counsel of king Solomon: “Do not take to heart all the things that people say, lest you hear your servant cursing you”(Ecc 7:21). If you start listening to all the things that people say about you, you will be constantly discouraged. We cannot please everyone and cannot expect praise from everyone. If everybody praises a person, then it may be that they were forced to or he is a false prophet.