Satan uses discouragement and fear to cripple God’s people. He uses all of his lies to try to keep us from God. However, God created Satan and knows his ways. This is why God gave us weapons to guard our hearts and minds against the deceiver. The enemy is the father of lies (John 8:4) and God is the Father of Truth, Jesus (John 14:6). God equipped us well to stand against Satan and his lies. Here are 3 weapons against discouragement and fear (part 2).
Before you read the 3 weapons against discouragement and fear (part 2)…
See Discouragement and Fear (Part 1)
The enemy uses discouragement to keep you bound up in a world of fear.
1 Corinthians 13 (NLT)
13 Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
God put 1 Cor. 13:13 in the Bible for a reason. Satan uses three tactics to instill fear and discouragement.
He wants you to lose:
- Faith in God.
- Hope in God.
- Love for God.
We need to know God in order to guard our hearts and minds against the enemy. In order to know God, you MUST know Jesus. There is ONLY one way to the Father and that is by believing that Jesus is His Son, He died for your sins and rose again from the dead. Do you believe this?
John 14:6 (NIV)
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
Everyone must come to a time in their lives where they must chose whom they will serve, the world and the enemy, with his lies and fear or the The One True God, Jesus Christ, with His Truth with His Peace. Have you made that decision? If not, do it NOW.
Here are 3 weapons against discouragement and fear (part 2).
1. Praise
Notice in Psalm 138: 3 after praising God, God answered David’s prayers and gave him strength but praise must come first. Before we go to Him with any requests, we must acknowledge who He is and all that He does with our praise and adoration.
Psalm 138 (NLV)
138 I will give You thanks with all my heart. I will sing praises to You in front of the gods. 2 I will bow down toward Your holy house. And I will give thanks to Your name for Your loving-kindness and Your truth. For You have honored Your Word because of what Your name is.
3 You answered me on the day I called. You gave me strength in my soul.
Praising and acknowledging God as Lord cripples the enemy and strengthens us.
2. Prayer
Second, after praise, Jesus said we must watch and pray. We can’t do battle with the enemy on our own. There is power in prayer.
Matthew 26:41(The Message)
41 Jesus said,…”Stay alert; be in prayer so you don’t wander into temptation without even knowing you’re in danger. There is a part of you that is eager, ready for anything in God. But there’s another part that’s as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.
The power of Jesus through His Holy Spirit is mandatory to guard against the enemy. That is why people who do not follow Christ fall for all sorts of lies and craziness, they have no understanding of the Truth, and have no defense against evil. Even the archangel Michael would not battle satan alone. I love how The Message version says it in Jude 9-11.
Jude 9-11 The Message (MSG)
9-11 The Archangel Michael, who went to the mat with the Devil as they fought over the body of Moses, wouldn’t have dared level him with a blasphemous curse, but said simply, “No you don’t. God will take care of you!” But these people sneer at anything they can’t understand, and by doing whatever they feel like doing—living by animal instinct only—they participate in their own destruction.
3. Study your Bible
In addition to Praise and Prayer, begin studying your Bible. The book of John is a great place to start. Read the story of Jesus in any of the Gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Mark is a short book and easy to read. Maybe start with Mark and read a chapter each day. Just start! Let God renew your mind through your word.
Romans 12:2 (NLT)
2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Stop believing the lies that you can’t do it. Stop listening to the whispers that you don’t have the time. You do! It’s just like exercise. It’s a spiritual muscle that must be developed. It takes time and effort. Make God a priority. He makes you one. You wouldn’t want Him to say He doesn’t have time for you, would you?
Why is it we worry about our physical bodies than we do our Spiritual ones? It doesn’t matter if you are the most well built human on earth if you are hideous on the inside. It will come out and people will see the real you. Work that spiritual muscle. Take up your sword and fight!
Ephesians 6:17 New Life Version (NLV)
17 …Take the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.
Finally, please know I’m praying for you as you, like me, fight to overcome discouragement and fear. It is a daily struggle and we need to encourage each other and build each other up in faith. Begin your day with Praise, Prayer, and Bible Study even if it’s just 10 minutes. Then, God will answer you on the day you call and give you strength in your soul! (Psalm 138:3)
I hope this blessed you and you will use every weapon to defeat the discouragement that leads to fear. Thank you so much for stopping by!
Leave me a comment below to let me know what you think or sign the guest book in the menu to let me know more about you.
Love,
P.S. Google tells me the countries people are from and the languages the posts are translated to but that’s about all I know about my readers. Help me know you better. Take a minute and leave a note in the guestbook in the menu above and let me know you were here.
New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Message (MSG)
Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2019 Shawna Novak
Love this one…and all the others too!!! You are very talented, keep it up.
Thanks Melissa! I just write what God puts on my heart. I never know who it is for. I so appreciate the encouraging words. Hope you are doing well. Love ya, Shawna 😘