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Pastor Beal

DOWN BUT NOT OUT!

"And let us not be weary in well doing; for in due
season we shall reap, IF we faint not." Gal. 6:9

One of the earliest lessons of life is that we live in an imperfect and unfair world. Yet, even though we live in an imperfect world, we are cared for and loved, by a perfect God. I have come to notice an increasing number of depressed people. People who feel so low that they could sit on a slice of bread and swing both legs! Could I be speaking to you today? Are you discouraged? I believe that discouragement is the forerunner of depression. Maybe you have lost one of the "security blankets of life", like a job, friend, health, or family member. Let me first say, don't ignore or deny your state of discouragement. Deal with the problem, weather the storm. You'll find that discouragement is often the "darkness before the dawn"! It's very common mid-way through a task to experience discouragement. In Neh. Ch. 4, we find that halfway through the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem, discouragement came upon the people. The discouragement brought fatigue, frustration (lack of focus), and fear of failure, which in turn brought a lack of confidence. In fact in v. 10 they said, "...we are not able to build the wall." Maybe you've been there, or are there now, where halfway through you're ready to "throw in the towel". For example, halfway through a marriage we have a "mid-life" crisis. The grass on the "other side of the fence" has a strong attraction. Like Neh. 4:10, you are more focused on the rubbish rather than the completed half of the wall. How about the car or house payments that half way through have lost the luster of their once upon a time freshness? Let me encourage you not to quit. Nehemiah remembered that "...our God shall fight for us." The devil loves for God's children to quit and leave half-built walls. They do more damage than we'll ever know.

Thanks! Pastor Earl Beal