Lion Heart ENCOURAGE - Getting Worn Out

Intro:

Hey Man of God! In our last ENCOURAGE posting we ended off with the illustration that seeking God is like looking for a treasure. Practically speaking this is very illustrative. When we get a glimpse of how valuable that treasure is….we drop everything else to seek it and find it. May our eyes be wide open when God reveals Himself to us, so that we don’t miss the greatness of this treasure.

“To Him be all the Glory, all the Power and all Honour, Amen”

Encouragement:

Getting worn out. Is this a symptom of our modern times or what!

I know I get to this place as well sometimes, and I’m sure you do to. When everything becomes just too much. And yes, in a way it is too much. In a way we are our own worst enemies allowing all these things into our lives.

But whoever you are, wherever you find yourself, there are times in our lives were we just get worn out. Worn thin. Weary. Like a worn out old cotton garment facing the desert heat, sand and blistering wind day in and day out. Your days are more like ‘do I really have to get up now’, ‘is it already Monday’, ‘Can’t I just disappear’?

If these are things you’ve been thinking, then I’d like to assure you today that you’re not alone! Brother, you’re not alone.

(If you need some encouragement and comradery, we run our Lion Heart Journey Groups on a monthly basis. If you need some Christian men to walk with you, please reach out to me and get plugged in)

Thankfully the bible addresses these very situations over and over. Let’s see what the word says in Romans 5:3-4: (NIV)

"Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope."

You know, I've learnt that hope is not the absence of struggle, but the presence of God in the midst of it. When we face struggles, we have a choice to make. And depending on how we face up to the struggles, will determine if we get worn out or built up. And I’m not judging brother, remember, I’ve been there too.

We can let it break us, or we can let it make us. We can let it destroy our faith, or we can let it strengthen our faith. Let’s read that again, Romans 5:3-4, 'Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.

If we follow the biblical sequence here, we see that hope is not the first thing that happens when we face adversity. First, we suffer. Then, we persevere. Then, we develop character. And then, we experience hope.

Hope is not the initial response to hardship, but it's the ultimate result of walking through hardship with God. Working through hardship with God.

So, when you're facing adversity, don't give up. Don't lose hope. Because on the other side of your struggle, there is a stronger, more resilient you, waiting to emerge. And when you come out the other side, you'll be able to look back and say, 'I didn't just survive, I thrived. I didn't just make it through, I grew stronger. And I didn't just find hope, I became a source of hope for others.

Now brothers, I know, there are many days where we do not want to hear this. There are days we just need rest. There are days we want to give up. Yes, rest is good and necessary, but hear me now, our rest is not found in running away! Our rest is not found in giving up!

Our rest is found in God.

Let’s take a look at part of David’s life and see what we can learn from it.

 1 Sam 30:6 NKJV

“Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”

The back story to the above scripture goes back a few years to when David had lost hope. David had become weary of fighting. David “the mighty man of valor” had stopped trusting God to deliver him, he got worn out, and he chose to run and hide. (You see, it happens to great and small alike.) Then, sometime after choosing to run away from Saul to the Philistines, the city where David and his men lived was ransacked by the enemy, and the women and children carried away. Following this David’s men wanted to stone him, to kill him, as they knew that it was David’s bad decisions that had led them there. A pretty bleak outcome if you ask me.

But, it was this trying time for David and his men, that led David back to his roots. Back to where his help comes from. You see this suffering led him to seek God. Even though it took some dark days to teach him that he had missed it, David knew where his help came from! The last part of this scripture says “But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.”

Here we see one of the great men of God, failing. But we also see what he did to start the journey back to where he had fallen from. 

Practically speaking, let’s look at how we can strengthen ourselves in the Lord:

-            Singing to God:

• Isa 40:31- But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.

• Exo 15:2 -  The Lord is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.

  
  

-            Speaking in Tongues

• 1 Cor 14:4 - He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.

  
  

-            Speaking to you soul

• Ps 42:5-6, 11 - Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him. For the help of His Countenance. O my God, my soul is cast down within me; Therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan, And from the heights of Hermon, from the Hill Mizar. Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God.

• Ps 105:1-5 – Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works! Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord! Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face evermore! Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth.

Now these are not just ‘interesting ideas’, these are concrete actions that will lead to us being strengthened to face the trials we are in. Trials will come, but how will we respond?

Lastly, I’d like to highlight one of my life motto's: Abiding in the Vine. We can do nothing without God. Jesus wasn’t lying when He said ‘..without Me you can do nothing’ (John 15:5)

There is a desperate need to Abide in Jesus. To seek Jesus. To love Jesus. To know Jesus.

In this world we will face many battles. Many days are a fight. But facing these without God is dire!

Pursuing Him is everything! Protecting our peace is important. Being wise about the battles you engage in can help preserve your capacity.

Bless you, my brothers!

Please fwd this message to those who you think can benefit!

Your Brother in Christ,

Stanley