Stress & Discouragement -- Biblical Examples

Here’s a little gem I discovered that really empowers me when I’m going through hardship ...

How encouraged and supported do you feel when you’re going through a tough time and someone lets you know that they’re praying for you? And you know they mean it, they really do send up prayers in your behalf. Multiply this feeling and this benefit by a bazillion by thinking about the fact that JESUS is “praying” for you too! (I’m not sure if praying is the proper term ... he prayed when he was on earth, but now that he’s right there in Jehovah’s presence is it still called prayer since he’s able to talk to Jehovah face to face?? But the fact remains: he is pleading for us.)

(Romans 8:31-34) What, then, are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who will be against us? Since he did not even spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, will he not also, along with him, kindly give us all other things? ... Christ Jesus is the one who died, yes, more than that, the one who was raised up, who is at the right hand of God and who also pleads for us.

(Hebrews 7:24, 25) because he continues alive forever, his priesthood has no successors. So he is able also to save completely those who are approaching God through him, because he is always alive to plead for them.

[Strong's Concordance] [Thayer's Greek Lexicon]

Greek word = entugchanó. From en and tugchano -- confer with; make intercession; plead

Usage: to go to or meet a person, especially for the purpose of conversation, consultation, or supplication; to make petition; entreat

definition of intercession -- saying a prayer or intervening on behalf of another person

definition of plead -- make an emotional appeal in order to persuade; present and argue for (a position), especially in court or in another public context

definition of supplication -- asking or begging for something earnestly or humbly

So Jesus is intervening in our behalf and making an emotional appeal (pleading), earnestly begging (supplication) Jehovah to help us!!

Examples of him praying for his followers:

Luke 22:31, 32 -- Simon, Simon, look! Satan has demanded to have all of you to sift you as wheat. But I have made supplication for you that your faith may not give out; and you, once you have returned, strengthen your brothers. [verse 32 in The Message Bible: Simon, I’ve prayed for you in particular that you not give in or give out. When you have come through the time of testing, turn to your companions and give them a fresh start.]

“All of you” -- it’s plural, it includes all of God’s people. Sifting is an interesting word choice. When you sift wheat or flour, you put it into a sieve and apply pressure to it and shake it up to separate the fine and coarse parts. That’s exactly what Satan wants to do to us: shake us, throw us around, give us a rough time through pressure, etc.

Jesus knew his prayers for Peter would work, because he told him WHEN you have come through the testing, strengthen your brothers. “Once you have returned” – the Study Bible says : “turned back (around). It appears that Jesus is referring to Peter’s returning or recovering from his fall that would be caused largely by his overconfidence combined with a fear of man.” Peter tripped up, but his faith did not give out completely and he later became a pillar of strength and conviction, his faith made him a bold and fearless preacher in the face of ridicule and opposition, and he greatly strengthened his brothers for years.

The entire 17th chapter of John is a prayer Jesus said with the apostles in the upper room right before his arrest. “I make request concerning ... those whom you have given me ... they have observed your word ... and have believed that you sent me (verses 6-9). I make request, not concerning these only [his disciples, us], but also concerning those putting faith in me through their word [those who put faith in him as a result of our preaching work].” (verses 20, 21) He also asked Jehovah to watch over them on account of His own name (verse 11), because of the wicked one (verse 15), and to sanctify them by means of the truth (verse 17).

Jesus fully understands what Satan is capable of, so he is begging Jehovah in our behalf. Knowing that Jesus is pleading for us is very soothing and strengthening, and it’s proof of how much he tenderly cares. He can sympathize with our weaknesses and struggles, empathize with our pain, read our heart, and he knows us and our circumstances through and through. WHAT IF you could hear what Jesus is saying to Jehovah about you, what he is pleading for?! How strong and confident would you feel then? You wouldn’t fear a thousand or a million or a billion enemies ... whether those enemies are humans, superhumans, emotions, temptations, situations, trials, or otherwise. Your advocate is continually begging Jehovah for you.

(James 5:16) A righteous man’s supplication has a powerful effect.

... if this is true of a righteous human, imagine the powerful effect the supplication of JESUS has!!

 
How does Jehovah feel about his servants who are down in the dumps?

*** w14 6/15 pp. 23-27 pars. 14,15 Do You View Human Weakness as Jehovah Does? ***

We are also helped to broaden our view of others by comparing our thinking with Jehovah’s reaction to some of his servants who felt low in spirits. Elijah was one of them. Although he had fearlessly challenged 450 prophets of Baal, Elijah ran away from Queen Jezebel when he learned that she was plotting to kill him. After walking some 95 miles to Beer-sheba, he went deep into the wilderness. Exhausted by this trek under the blazing sun, the prophet sat down under a tree and “asked that he might die.”—1 Ki. 18:19; 19:1-4.

How did Jehovah feel when he looked down from heaven and saw his faithful prophet in despair? Did he reject his servant because he temporarily became depressed and lacked courage? Not at all! Jehovah took into account Elijah’s limitations and dispatched an angel. Twice the angel encouraged Elijah to eat. Thus, the next journey would not “be too much for [him].” (Read 1 Kings 19:5-8.) Yes, even before giving any directions, Jehovah listened to his prophet and took practical measures to sustain him.

Jehovah was so gracious with Elijah and considered his feelings. Chapter 12 of the Imitate their Faith book has beautiful information about this. Elijah was discouraged because he:

•   felt worthless, that his work had been in vain because the people he preached to were still rebellious and practicing false worship

•   felt alone, like he was the only one left who still served Jah

•   felt afraid, because Jezebel had threatened his life and had already killed many of his fellow prophets

He was so distraught that he begged to die.

How Jehovah addressed his feelings:

• Sent an angel to miraculously give him 2 meals and let him know that what he was suffering was too much for him.

• Reminded him of his power by means of a mighty wind that tore mountains apart and also a blazing fire. This assured him that with a God like Jah on his side, he had nothing to fear from Ahab & Jezebel.

• Elijah heard a calm, low voice inviting him to express his feelings again, and Jah reassured him that he was not worthless because he would play an important role in his long-range purpose to eradicate false worship in Israel.

• To help him cope with loneliness, he sent him to anoint Elisha as his successor, meanwhile the two worked together for years.

• He revealed that 7,000 Israelites were still faithful, so he was not truly alone.

All of this was enough to move Elijah to spring back into action and carry on. What a moving testimony to how much Jehovah cares about his servants’ feelings and how much he wants to encourage us.

Elijah’s mistaken feelings resulted when he judged himself by his own standards. He forgot that judgments and reality are two completely different things! Judgments are merely opinions, perceptions based on someone’s feelings. This is the exact opposite of a fact because fact is reality. So he needed to step back and do a reality check in order to get his thinking in line with the truth. He later was able to do that. So we can take a lesson from this and try to remember that judging ourselves by our own standards is the opposite of reality and will only bring unnecessary stress on ourselves. The only opinion that matters is Jehovah’s view of us.

*** w14 3/15 pp. 15-16 pars. 14-18 How to Maintain a Positive Viewpoint ***

Alone with his thoughts, Elijah reflected on the seeming futility of his work as a prophet. He told Jehovah: “I am no better than my forefathers.” His point was that he felt as useless as the dust and bones of his dead ancestors. He had, in effect, tested himself by his own standards and had decided that he was a failure, of no value to Jehovah or anyone else.

But the Almighty saw Elijah differently. Elijah remained valuable in God’s eyes, and Jehovah took steps to assure him of that reality. God sent an angel to strengthen Elijah. Jehovah also provided food and drink that would sustain Elijah during his 40-day trip south to Mount Horeb. Moreover, God kindly corrected Elijah’s mistaken idea that no other Israelites had remained faithful to Jehovah. Significantly, God gave Elijah new assignments, which he accepted. Elijah benefited from Jehovah’s help, and he returned to his work as a prophet with renewed energy.—1 Ki. 19:5-8, 15-19.

Elijah’s experience can help you to verify that you are in the faith and can move you toward a positive viewpoint. First, think of the ways that Jehovah has sustained you. Might one of his servants, perhaps an elder or other mature Christian, have helped you at some point when you were in need? (Gal. 6:2) Have you been nourished spiritually by the Bible, our Christian publications, and the congregation meetings? The next time you benefit in one of these ways, consider the true Source of your help and offer a prayer of thanks to Him.—Ps. 121:1, 2.

Second, recognize that a negative viewpoint can be deceptive. God’s evaluation of us is what counts. (Romans 14:4) Jehovah values our devotion and faithfulness to him; he does not measure us by our accomplishments. And it could well be that, just as was true of Elijah, you have accomplished more for Jehovah than you realize. There likely are ones in the congregation whom you have affected for good, as well as those in the territory who have been exposed to the truth through your efforts.

Finally, view each assignment from Jehovah as proof that he is with you. (Jer. 20:11) Like Elijah, you might be discouraged because your service seems fruitless or because some spiritual goal seems unattainable. Yet, you still share the greatest privilege that any of us can now have—that of preaching the good news and bearing God’s name. Remain faithful. Then, in a sense, the words in one of Jesus’ parables can be said to you: “Enter into the joy of your master.”—Matt. 25:23.

Our moods and feelings make no difference to Jehovah’s love. Trust him to help you when you are discouraged and depressed.

During World War II, French doctors coined a name for a disease which made its appearance in prison camps: “barbed-wire sickness”, a psychosis brought about by confinement. One of its symptoms was a sense of futility and meaninglessness. Why go on when there was no future? Those behind the barbed wire lost hope. They could no longer see anything good in their lives.

This type of despair happens to us too, everyone gets depressed and discouraged for one reason or another. It’s not a sign of spiritual weakness. It’s a normal part of living in this wicked system. Sometimes we feel like we’re at our breaking point, our problems are all consuming. Our spiritual ancestors in the scriptures battled situations that made them feel like they couldn’t go on, such as …

Elijah

Jonah

Job

Abraham

Naomi

For example, Elijah:

He became so discouraged and hopeless that he begged Jehovah to die. Even after he had just directly been involved in numerous miracles: he prophesied that a drought was coming and the land dried up, then he prayed for rain and it came. A handful of flour and enough oil to make one last meal was prolonged for the widow of Zarephath and her son: they had a regular supply of food from until the famine ended. He resurrected a young boy. He put to shame the Baal prophets on Mt Carmel with a spectacular showdown of Jehovah’s power. Yet he quickly sank into discouragement when Queen Jezebel threatened his life. He went into hiding and the waves of depression started crashing over him. He became so upset that his whole view of life became distorted. He was blinded to the wonderful things that had happened to him. He ran away into the wilderness and collapsed under a tree. He felt alone and abandoned, what’s the point of going on?

What factors contributed to his reactions?

1. He was physically and mentally exhausted -- he had been running for his life. When our bodies and minds are tired and overworked, it’s easy to get a distorted view of the facts and become discouraged and in despair.

2. He felt all alone -- loneliness can lead to despair. He may have thought: “Here I am loyal to God and I’m a fugitive. Why am I suffering like this? No one likes me. No one understands me. Even Jehovah has left me in the lurch.”

3. He was disappointed with Jehovah -- he felt as if Jehovah had let him down because He had allowed Jezebel to try to kill him and to chase him out of the country. Why did Jehovah allow this to happen? Where is he?

4. He was disappointed in himself -- he’s just sitting under the shade of a bush out in the wilderness after bolting in fear. Why can’t I be stronger and fight off these feelings of discouragement? Why do I feel so useless and like such a failure?

Those factors also have a similar effect on us …

We might stand in judgment of ourselves and conclude that we’re worthless and useless.

We might think everything we touch turns out all wrong, so why bother.

We might feel completely alone and that no one understands us.

We might want to curl up in a ball and just hide from everyone.

We might be so depressed about the way life is going that we believe Jehovah has given up on us.

Jehovah didn’t condemn or scold Elijah for expressing his feelings. Instead, he helped Elijah regain strength.

When we’re in the middle of depressing and discouraging events and feel miserable, it’s important to remember that we’re only looking at a small part of the picture. What is real is out of proportion to what we believe is real. The truth is that Jehovah won’t leave us high and dry. He is there even when everything else is taken away. He has promised to loyally stick with us through days of plenty and the days when we lose everything – when friends leave, when money is lost, when families fall apart. Jehovah isn’t a fair weather friend who’s only by our side during the happy times. He has promised to stand with us through the good and bad, even when our moods make us say and do things we would not normally do.

(Psalm 34:18) Jehovah is close to the brokenhearted; he saves those who are crushed in spirit.

(1 John 3:19, 20) We will assure [footnote: persuade, convince] our hearts before him regarding whatever our hearts may condemn us in, because God is greater than our hearts and knows all things.

This scripture is telling us that if our self-condemning heart convinces us we’re not worth much to Jehovah, we need to do the reverse - persuade and convince that heart. Win it over. We can do this by taking time with Jehovah through meditation on articles and scriptures, and pouring out our heart to him, telling him we want to believe we are precious to him, we want to be convinced of his love, we want to accept it. We can ask him to help us remember that it’s SATAN who has always devalued humans, treating us as if we were worthless, Jehovah is the opposite.

*** w00 5/1 p. 30 Jehovah Is Greater Than Our Hearts ***
Always remember this: More important than how we view ourselves is how Jehovah views us. Whenever he sees us trying to please him, he reacts not simply with mild satisfaction but with rejoicing. (Proverbs 27:11) Though what we achieve may seem to be relatively little in our own eyes, our willingness and good motive delight him. He looks beyond what we accomplish; he discerns what we WANT to do; he is aware of our wishes and desires. Jehovah can read our heart.

Chapter 24 of the Draw Close to Jehovah book is a treasure, considering 4 ways the Bible helps us to “assure our hearts” of Jehovah’s love. For example:

(paragraph 21)
"Let each of us do everything in our power to reject all of Satan’s lies, including the lie that we are worthless or unlovable. If your experiences in life have taught you to see yourself as an obstacle too daunting even for God’s immense love to surmount, or your good works as too insignificant even for his all-seeing eyes to notice, or your sins as too vast even for the death of his precious Son to cover, you have been taught a lie. Reject such lies with all your heart! Let us continue to assure our hearts with the truth expressed in Paul’s inspired words: “I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Romans 8:38, 39."