Sometimes you can feel discouragement. Sometimes you feel detached. Like in “It’s A Wonderful Life,” it can seem like you are looking at your life through a kitchen window. You see yourself doing things that you don’t want to do. You see the shattering of your self-discipline. You see your negativity. Your hope wanes. You think that things would be better if you weren’t involved. You feel like everything you touch, fails.

 

Take heart, this is a part of the dream journey. Discouragement comes when you face hardships.

 

I had a friend who was having a hard time getting a job because her undergraduate degree was from another country. Our state has a program which helps people get training to make them more employable. However, this program rarely includes getting a master’s degree. My friend decided that she would leverage this program to get her MBA. She was told that the chances of her getting the state to cover her MBA were slim to none. But she explained that she could not find gainful employment in her field without it. She wrote letter after letter explaining her situation. Guess what.  She won. She was accepted into the program and a few months ago graduated with her MBA. She was told over 400 times from hiring managers that she did not get the job. Sure, she was discouraged but after all those ”no’s” she figured that there would be a “yes” eventually.

 

There is good news. God doesn’t leave you alone to fend for yourself. He has a good plan for you to keep on working towards the dreams He planted in your heart. My friend’s situation embodied these 3 ways to overcome her discouragement.

 

1 – Recognize it. Sometimes discouragement sneaks in. Realize that this will happen and be on guard.

    • “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” – Peter 5:8

 

2  – Inventory your attitude. Encouragement breeds encouragement. Negativity breeds negativity. A little yeast spoils the whole lot like negative talk in your mind.

    • “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” – Galatians 5:9

 

3 – Faith Check. Every day you put your faith in something. It’s a choice. Often that faith is in yourself. Instead put your faith in God. Only He can guard and guide you.

    • “for He guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful one.” – Proverbs 2:8

 

How will you apply these tips in your life today?