The Nature of Discouragement: When Life Gets a Flat Tire, Part 1

Discouragement is " the feeling of despair in the face of obstacles" (The Free Dictionary). You don't have to be unemployed, broke, sick, homeless, lonely, bereaved, in a war zone or the victim of disaster for you to be the perfect candidate for discouragement. This monster does not care whether you are thin or overweight, short or tall, famous or obscure, outgoing or reserved. Discouragement shows no regard for background, class or status.

Whether you are at the bottom of the well or on top of the world, like a ton of bricks, discouragement can hit anyone anywhere anytime. All that is needed for discouragement to be possible is a person and a problem. Regardless of the size of the problem, as long as the person thinks it's huge, then that becomes the size of the problem to that person. Discouragement plagues husbands, wives, parents, children, musicians, actors, soldiers, athletes, coaches, doctors, lawyers, politicians, public officials, bankers, CEOs, preachers, etc.

Just recently our prayer team was encouraged when we got word that the 41-year-old leukemia patient we've been praying for was showing strength. We all started looking forward to seeing Eric in worship with us again at Church For All. In fact, Tory, his wife surprised us one Sunday morning, giving us added hope that Eric was doing fine. I made plans for an early morning trip to Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville to see, hug and pray with Eric. During the night I awoke sometime after 1 AM to use the rest room. Then I spotted a text message from Tory: "...Eric passed at 11 PM Sunday night..."

It was so utterly unexpected. So sudden. So abrupt. So brutal. So shocking.

Over the years I have learned how to make the Bible a top resource kit for understanding and overcoming moments of discouragement in my own life and in the lives of others. Eric's death sent me back to that never-failing source of strength. This two-part article captures some of my thoughts on reflecting on few biblical texts that show discouraged souls that remind us of our bout with the monster of discouragement.

The Nature of Discouragement

Discouragement does not necessarily come with teary eyes or a sad face. A discouraged person can wear a smiley face off and on as needed to hide the pain. It is not facial expression that holds the key to diagnosing who's discouraged and who's not. It's the mind, the spirit, the heart.

In Deuteronomy 1:28, we read, " Our brethren have discouraged our hearts..." The verb rendered "have discouraged" comes from the Hebrew term masas (pronounced maw-sas ). According to Strong's Concordance , masas means to liquefy , to melt (away), to waste (with disease), to faint (with fatigue, fear or grief).

Discouragement is an emotional disease of the heart that weakens the spirit and knocks the wind out of life's sail. As it simmers, discouragement goes from emotional to spiritual or moral, and at that point it may become "evil" (Deut. 1:34-35).

It is "evil" in the sense that discouragement competes with God's plan for your life. Discouragement strives to override what God has spoken or promised. Discouragement may render the heart deaf to God's voice. It may even program me to misread God and misunderstand people who care deeply about me. Discouragement enslaves my life, my potential, and my future to my problem, and there is just something wrong with that picture.

In its practical impact on a person's quality of life, discouragement is twin to depression. If there is any difference between depression and discouragement, it looks more like the distinction between shadow and darkness, but I am not sure which is which. In my experience the downward path follows this order: disappointment, discouragement, depression.

(Part 2 of this article deals with the root causes, signs and results of discouragement as well as the remedy to discouragement.)