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Encouraging Yourself
1 Samuel 30:6(b) '… but David made himself strong in the Lord his God.' (Bible in Basic English)
 Through the pressures of his life on the run from Saul, David learned at least one valuable lesson. There are times when we need to encourage ourselves, because there's no one else around to do it! Like David, we need to discover the secret of making ourselves strong in the Lord, because we live in a heavily secularized environment. Other people don't always understand or particularly appreciate our Christian commitment. Besides, if we're doing God's work, we are also pioneering something; results are not always instant and there are seasons where God's favour doesn't seem so real. One thing that will help us to encourage ourselves in the Lord, is remembering the big picture. Devotees of the human potential movement encourage us to look to ourselves and see the hidden greatness within. But Christianity says if we look within ourselves, we will only find failure and despair. We must instead look beyond our own weakness and rely upon God's strength. What is the purpose of our lives? To make God look good (which he is!) Nothing is more encouraging than knowing that you're investing your life in something that cannot fail! God will always stand up to defend anyone who is carrying his name, and working for his honour. As long as our focus is on his ability, not our inability, that will be our source of strength.
Prayer: 'Lord, I know there are times when I will need to encourage myself in you. In those times, help me to keep my eyes on the big picture – the real goal of my life, which is making your name great!'
© 2003-2004 Mal Fletcher
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