(2) Discouragement in the Bible

You might be surprised to know that God talks quite a bit about discouragement. In the Old Testament, we come across the Hebrew word, chathath. This word means “to be dismayed, disheartened or discouraged.” It is linked to a sense of hopelessness. Joshua uses this word to encourage the people of Israel. They had been feeling intimidated and overwhelmed by their enemies and God delivered them. Joshua focused their attention on the miraculous victory God granted and said, “Don't ever be afraid or discouraged [chathath], be strong and courageous, for the LORD is going to do this to all of your enemies (Joshua 10:25 NLT).”

In the New Testament the Greek word egkakeo means, “to lose courage, become faint of heart.” Jesus recognized the probablility of his disciples becoming discouraged and so, “He told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart [egkakeo] (Luke 18:1 ESV). He went on to tell them by way of parable that God is not like human friends and judges. He is compassionate, gracious, and eager to care for His people, not begrudging, cold, and slow to help like man.

From these words found in scripture, we see that discouragement is the absence of courage, hope, and confidence. It is a loss of confidence, enthusiasm, and motivation to keep going.

Here’s a simple fact of life: Discouragement will come upon all of us from time to time. We’ll all face it, the question is how we deal with it. When we understand discouragement form a biblical perspective, and deal with it based on biblical principles, the frequency and severity of discouragement will be greatly decreased.

And even as we get our feet wet in the waters of biblical encouragement, we already feel the encouragement of God. Whatever we face, whatever challenge, God is for us, to accomplish what is best for us. He is leading the charge in the battle for our good and His glory. And, “If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:32). God is working, always working in your life, for your good. And He is never going to tell you it’s a bad time to ask for help! He is more eager to show us His plan than we are to know it, and more eager to provide His strength than we are to have it.