Tag: <span>despair</span>


“The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged” Deuteronomy 31:8

Let me be very honest with you: I don’t always feel God’s presence. Sometimes He seems a million miles away. Sometimes He doesn’t even seem real. Can you relate? What do you do during times like that?

I know that feelings are not reliable. They change according to the weather or what’s happening in my life. God’s word does not change. No matter what our circumstances, God is present. He has said, “I will never leave you; never will I forsake you.” (Hebrews 13:5) He is the same compassionate God on good days as He is on bad days.

So, what am I going to stand on – facts or feelings? I must choose, then act accordingly. Let me share with you two exercises that help me lift my mood from despair to hope.

1. Singing God’s truths. One of my morning routines is to spend twenty minutes on the treadmill. About eight in the morning, I grab a hymn book and head for the exercise room. While I’m on the treadmill I sing God’s praises.

2. Repeating God’s truths. I write out a Bible verse so I can read it again during the day. Sometimes I say it out loud and then I add, “This is the truth and I stand on it.”

Some of the verses I use are:

The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” (Deuteronomy 31:8).

Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:22,23).

As I affirm God’s truths, my feelings catch on to the message and move over from despair to hope.

Jesus, I thank you that you have said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18) Knowing that you are with me now, I will move ahead with confidence. Amen.

Questions: Have you been struggling with despair? Are you relying on feelings instead of fact? How can you affirm God’s truth in your life today?

By Helen Lescheid
Used by Permission

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FURTHER READING

Contentment and a Broken Ankle
Peace or Panic?
The Gentle Christian  How do I embrace a gentle spirit when I have been hurt and/or deceived?
Beauty out of Brokenness


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thoughts by Helen Grace Lescheid Thoughts by Women

What happens to us, as Christ seekers, when ill winds of adversity whip around us?


The cry of the heart….“We would see Jesus.”  (John 12:21 KJV)

The cry of the hungry and thirsty…a cry that sometimes cannot be identified. Some nebulous something or other.

Yet, most of the time, those who cry out don’t even know they are searching, for, they (we) attempt to fill that void in our lives by pursuing all sorts of other things.

But what happens to us, as Christ seekers, when those ill winds of adversity whip around us? Many times, we fall apart.

Cries can be heard in the wilderness. We cry out in our hunger and thirst. We find no comfort, no peace.

And yet, sometimes, the Lord allures, persuades, and draws His people into wilderness valleys. Hosea said, “Therefore, behold, I will allure her, will bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfort to her. I will give her vineyards from there, and the Valley of Achor as a door of hope; she shall sing there.” (Hosea 2:14-15a NKJV)

The only word used in the Old Testament for wilderness is midbar. It doesn’t mean a sandy desert; it means a pasture (as an open field, where cattle are driven) and implies the meaning of a desert as a deserted place. It also means speech and comes from a word meaning to speak.

Wilderness is a lonely, uninhabited wasteland, yet, a place where God will draw you in order to speak to you. Where you are set apart from the madding crowd.

To a place filled with His presence.

A place where He will speak comfort to you.

In the Hosea verse, comfort (or comfortably) actually means heart and also means speak into a heart tenderly, friendly, and comfortably.

So there, in the midst of your heartache, your afflictions, your trials, He will speak tender comfort to your heart and bring forth vineyards from the Valley of Achor, meaning the valley of trouble.

Vineyards, as a fertile place, a place of growth in circumstances, a place to glean a harvest, this is where Jesus will meet you. And you will sing there, as Hosea said.

The Hebrew word for sing means ‘to heed, to pay attention, to respond, to begin to speak, specifically to sing, shout, testify, announce.

So that which causes affliction, as the valley of troubles, will be an entrance, a gateway to hope, as a cord of expectancy.

Oh, to see Jesus when we are in that lonely wasteland of hopelessness, to walk with Him there, to hear Him speak comfort to our discouraged soul, that we may pay attention to His voice. And there, we will find our vineyards, as sustenance, supply, and growth, in Him.

Our hope is renewed in Him. And we sing His praises, for that which had been a source of calamity has become a source of redemption and blessing.

A valley of trouble. A strange place to find vineyards, isn’t it? But it is God’s doing.

“This was the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. (Psalm 118:23 NKJV)

Yes, God knows your need while you’re in that wilderness experience. He knows how long you’re to stay there and just what you need while you’re there. Mainly, you need Him.

And Jesus is there to walk you through the wilderness and to bring you out of it.

The cry of the hungry and thirsty? Yes…

We would see Jesus.” (John 12:21 KJV)

By Lynn Mosher
Used by Permission

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Further Reading

•  Struggles, Despair
•   Forgiveness – Yourself and  Others
•  Salvation Explained


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thoughts by Lynn Mosher Thoughts by Women