How to Deal with Discouragement

God sees you

Pastor Eli talked about two ladies who were both competing for two different things, but lacking one. Rachel and Leah were both wed to the same man named Jacob because of cultural traditions and the corruption of their father. Rachel was the original woman who Jacob wanted to marry, so he had to work for her father, Laban, for seven years in order to marry her. But after seven years, Laban tricked Jacob and gave him Rachel’s older sister, Leah, instead. Jacob complained about the trickery and Laban defended his scheme and told Jacob he will give Rachel to him if he worked another seven years for him. Rachel was described as having a lovely figure and blessed with beauty, and Leah was described as having weak eyes. So both sisters were married to the same man, and this caused problems as the story goes on.

"When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. 32 Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, 'It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.' 33 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, 'Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.' So she named him Simeon. 34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, 'Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.' So he was named Levi. 35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, 'This time I will praise the Lord.' So she named him Judah. Then she stopped having children." Genesis 29:31-35 (NIV)

In the story, Leah was miserable because she was ignored and not wanted by her husband. She was overshadowed by her sister’s beauty and put in a bad spot by her father’s trickery. We can see in the passage that her desire was to receive the love of her husband, and she thought she could earn his love by birthing him many sons. In your life, even if others have overlooked you or rejected you, God still sees you.

Rachel then became very jealous of her sister Leah, because Leah was birthing sons for Jacob and Rachel had yet to bore him any children (Genesis 30:1-13). Rachel wanted to find happiness based on having kids and what others said of her. If you're basing your happiness on other people's opinions of you, then that's not true happiness. It is not good to see your value based on what others say, but rather on what God says about you.

What does God think about you being happy?

In Matthew 6:31-7:9, Jesus does not want us to be worried about anything - worrying won’t make things better. Instead, Jesus wants us to trust in our Heavenly Father for all things, for God is watching over us and knows what we need. All we need to do is focus on Him and everything else will come together.

“Until God is enough, nothing will ever be enough.” – Pastor Eli Nelson

Stability comes from within, not from without

‍You don't need anything from the world to make you feel better. Contentment and stability only comes from God. Seek first His kingdom, and all these things will be added to you! Thankfulness cures a discouraged heart.

"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness." Colossians 2:6-7 (NIV)

One of the great things that Leah did was to recognize what God was doing for her as she bore a third son named Judah. She decided to stop and praise the Lord: “This time I will praise the Lord" (v. 35). Leah didn't realize that through her son Judah would come the promised Messiah.

"What you have been overlooking is often an opportunity disguised in discouragement." - Pastor Eli Nelson

Pastor Eli ended his message encouraging us to think and write at least eight things that we are grateful for and three things that we are thankful for: Grateful Eight and Thankful Three! This is how we deal with discouragement! Meditate on what is good, pure, lovely, excellent, and praiseworthy (Phil. 4:8). Redirect your thoughts towards thankfulness. Isaiah says to throw on a "garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair" (61:3).

A grateful heart is a stable heart.

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