God's remedy for discouragement

          It is so nice to be feeling better! I had the flu and then it seemed to take forever to get over it. So it is nice to be up and around – to feel like cooking and cleaning and all the things I usually do.

            When I was over the fever but still not up to doing much of anything it was easy to become discouraged. I certainly could understand the questions Asaph wrote in Psalm 77!

Will the Lord reject forever?

Will He never show His favor again?

Has His unfailing love vanished forever?

Has His promise failed for all time?

Has God forgotten to be merciful?

Has He in anger withheld His compassion?

            These questions loom large when everything around you seems hopeless. And I must confess I really struggled with similar questions. Today I was reminded of God's remedy of how to get past discouragement as I read the whole psalm.

            Asaph chose to remember two things:

The deeds of the Lord and the miracles of long ago

            Then after he remembered he meditated – thought deeply upon – these things

All God’s works and His mighty deeds

            After Asaph chose to remember and meditate about God and His incredible works he was able to boldly talk about

            God’s holiness

                        God’s character

                                    God’s power

                                                God’s redemption

                                                            And God’s provision and leading

            Something to put into practice when discouragement hits!