When We Feel Discouraged
By Cammie Easley, LPC, MHSP-S, Director of Child & Adolescent Services
Have you ever noticed that winter can feel the longest right before the arrival of spring? Or, have you ever felt most discouraged right before God provides a breakthrough in your life? It is hard to remain encouraged and hopeful when battles last longer than we expect, and seasons of life are harder than we imagined.
In my counseling office right now, I have heard from many who are discouraged. This discouragement has come for a variety of reasons: a new job is proving more challenging than anticipated, relational struggles are repeating in cycles without hope for change, depression is lasting longer than one would want, infertility is continuing despite much prayer and effort, etc. You can probably think of the places in your own life where you feel drawn to discouragement. I know I can.
As I have been praying through this idea of discouragement, I have found it very interesting what the Bible has to say about the word “discourage.” In the Old Testament, one of the Hebrew words for “discourage” is “rapa,” which means “to weaken, forsake, let go, or slacken.” In several instances, the word “rapa” is actually translated in English to read “to weaken one’s hands.”
Zephaniah 3:16-17 speaks to the discouraged when it states:
“On that day
they will say to Jerusalem,
“Do not fear, Zion;
do not let your hands hang limp.
17 The Lord your God is with you,
the Mighty Warrior who saves.
He will take great delight in you;
in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing.”
(emphasis added)
The visual of this idea of “weakened hands” when one is discouraged is quite fascinating. Think about it. When we have weak hands, we are less likely to be active, to fight opposition, to enter the battlefield, to engage. Weak hands keep us in a state of inactivity and passivity. Isn’t that exactly how the enemy would want us to respond when we are discouraged? To give up and surrender.
On the contrary, God continually exhorts us throughout Scripture to “strengthen our hands.” Isaiah 35:3-4 states:
“Strengthen the feeble hands,
steady the knees that give way;
4 say to those with fearful hearts,
“Be strong, do not fear;
your God will come,
he will come with vengeance;
with divine retribution
he will come to save you.”
In Hebrews 12, after calling believers to endure in the faith in the midst of hardship and discipline, the author writes:
Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.
13 “Make level paths for your feet,” [Prov. 4:26] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.”
God is continually calling us to strengthen our hands and our hearts and engage in the battle with courage. However, as a fellow human who deals with suffering, I know there are days when we all feel like we just can’t strengthen ourselves. The Bible also speaks to us in that space and reminds us that we are strengthened by One who never grows tired or weary.
Psalm 18:33-36 states:
“He makes my feet like the feet of a deer;
he causes me to stand on the heights.
34 He trains my hands for battle
my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
35 You make your saving help my shield,
and your right hand sustains me;
your help has made me great.
36 You provide a broad path for my feet,
so that my ankles do not give way.”
When we feel so discouraged, like we cannot find the strength in and of ourselves, God reminds us that it is HE who trains our hands for war. He teaches us to bend a bow of bronze. He equips us to stand on the heights. His help makes us great.
I pray today, if you find yourself in a season of discouragement, that you would lean into the God who can “strengthen your hands” and equip you for the season that you are in currently. And, if you need a fellow traveler to encourage you on your journey, reach out for help today. We are all called to “comfort others with the comfort we ourselves have received from God,” (2 Cor. 1:4) and we would love to be a comfort to you.
Meet Cammie Easley, LPC-MHSP, Director of Child & Adolescent Services!
Cammie graduated with her Master’s in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in May of 2014 from Denver Seminary in Denver, CO.
Throughout her career as a counselor, Cammie has been passionate about helping individuals of all ages overcome anxiety and depression, heal from past traumas, process their own grief, and develop into the healthy and whole people that God designed them to be.
She believes firmly that seasons of hardship are God’s tool which He uses to make us more like Himself and to reveal Himself to us in ways that we would not otherwise come to intimately know. One of her greatest joys in counseling is helping individuals figure out how they can heal in a holistic way that incorporates their body, mind, and spirit.