What to Do When You Get Discouraged

By Rick Warren

We put in long hours, we experience a unique form of loneliness, and we face difficult decisions
everyday. Its easy to get discouraged.
And I think discouragement is one of the most deadly of diseases. Everybody can catch it, and
you can catch it more than once. Its highly contagious and spreads easily and quickly.
But heres the good news: Discouragement is curable. Whenever I get discouraged, I head
straight to Nehemiah. This great leader of ancient Israel understood there were four reasons for
discouragement in ministry.
First, you get fatigued. You simply get tired as the laborers did in Nehemiah 4:10. Were human
beings, and we wear out. You cannot burn the candle at both ends. So if youre discouraged, it
may be that you dont have to change anything. You just need a vacation! Sometimes the most
spiritual thing you can do is go to bed.
Second, you get frustrated. Nehemiah says there was rubble all around. So much that it was
getting in the way of rebuilding the wall. Do you have rubble in your ministry? Have you noticed
that anytime you start doing something new, the trash starts piling up? If you dont clean it out
periodically, its going to stop your progress. You cant avoid it, so you need to learn to recognize
it and dispose of it quickly so you dont lose focus on your original intention.
Now, what is the rubble in your life? I think rubble is the trivial things that waste your time and
energy and prevent you from accomplishing what Gods called you to do. It could be committee
meetings. It could be television. It could be just about anything that turns you from Gods
purposes.
The third cause of discouragement is failure. They were unable to finish their task as quickly
as originally planned, and as a result, their confidence went down the drain. They were thinking,

We were stupid to think we could ever rebuild this wall. And you might be thinking, I was
dumb to ever think I could lead this church. I cant do it any more. You feel like a failure.
But you know what I do when I dont reach a goal on time? I just set a new goal. I dont give up.
The fact is if youre in the ministry, youre going to fail. Everybody fails. Everybody does
dumb things. So the issue is not that you failed its how you are going to respond to your
failure. Do you give into self-pity? Do you start blaming other people? Do you start complaining,
Its impossible? Or do you re-focus on Gods intentions and start moving again?
Finally, fear causes discouragement. Nehemiah 4:11, says this: Also our enemies said, Before
they know it or see us we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to
their work. You know the background to this story. Youve preached on Nehemiah before, and
you know there were people who did not want the wall to be rebuilt. They were doing everything
they could to keep that from happening. First, they criticized the Jews, and then they ridiculed
the Jews. When that didnt work, they threatened the Jews.
Notice who gets fearful the quickest: Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten
times over, `Wherever you turn, they will attack us. (Nehemiah 4:12) The people most affected
by fear are those who hang around negative people. If youre going to control the negative
thoughts in your life, youve got to get away from negative people as much as you can. Its like
the old saying, If youre going to soar with the eagles, you cant run with the turkeys.
Let me ask you this: what fear is causing you to be discouraged? The fear of criticism?
Embarrassment? That youre not capable of the task? That you cant handle pressure? How can
you tell when fear is causing discouragement in your life?
Its simple. You have an intense desire to run! Ive got to get out of this! Ive got to leave the
ministry! Ive got to leave this church! Yet, Ive learned in life that its rarely Gods will for me
to run from a difficult situation. If you dont learn in one place, guess what? God just gives you
another chance to learn somewhere else. Otherwise, you just jump from the frying pan into the
fire. Running from fear only makes it bigger. So, dont try to escape from lifes pressures.
If youll just hang in there, youll outlast that carnal person whos giving you so much trouble in
your church. But its important that you stick it out. A friend of mine in Los Angeles says, When
you go to a new church, the first year is the honeymoon. The pastor can do nothing wrong. The
second year, usually the pastor can do nothing right. The third year, usually, somebody has to go.
And it may be that just like God had to kill off a couple million Jews in the desert before Hed let
them go into the Promised Land, God may have to move some people out of your church before
He fulfills the vision that Hes given you. Never give up.
Reflection:
What is it that causes discouragement in your life? Maybe youre just fatigued. Youre just out of
energy. It was the most relaxing day of my life when I resigned as General Manager of the
universe. I realized something: the world did not fall apart the day I did that. I felt like I was
Atlas the whole world was on my shoulders. Would you relax and take a deep breath right now

and just let it out and let God drain that stress out of your life? Let God take those pressures,
those problems, those people, those circumstances, those critics, those challenges, and those
impossible situations.
Take a deep breath and just let it out. And rest. Maybe you need to take a vacation. I read a
statement the other day that was a great stress reliever to me. No football team in history ever
won a game without substitutions. If you feel like you have to be there every Sunday, youre
wrong. Maybe you need to start a regular exercise program. For instance, try walking. If you
walk two miles a day, youll get more energy. Maybe you need to start watching your nutrition,
or develop a hobby, something you enjoy so much youre willing to leave your work for it. And
sometimes thats hard to do when you love the ministry as much as we do. But you need it if
youre going to last in the ministry.
Maybe you have frustration in your life and thats why youre discouraged. Rubble has piled up
and your desk is heavy with work, deadlines and commitments. Youre trying to burn the candle
at both ends. What you need to do is reorganize your life. Say, God, help me see that Im not
doing the wrong thing. Im just doing it in the wrong way.
Maybe youre discouraged because you feel like a failure. You say, Ive been in this place for
six months (or six years), and I feel like Im treading water. Youre never a failure if what
youre doing is ultimately for the glory of God. Maybe Gods just been trying to teach you some
lessons. He wants you to stay there but to do things in a different way. Maybe He wants you to
move on. Only God can tell you when to let go and when to hold on. But never give up on your
dream! If you feel like youre a failure, listen to this: There is, therefore, no condemnation for
those who are in Christ Jesus. God does not condemn you. God loves you. Gods not mad at
you. God is on your side. If God be for us, who can be against us. One plus God equals a
majority.
One of the great truths of scripture is that God is the God of the second chance, and He lets you
start over. He says, I will restore the years that the locusts have eaten. If you would commit
yourself and say, Christ, whether I have five years or fifty years left, I want to commit it to You.
I want to renew my life commitment to You right now. Lord, whether you take me home next
week or in 50 or 60 years, I want the rest of my life to be the best of my life.
Maybe youre discouraged because of fear. Youre dealing with fears like, I cant handle this.
Its too much responsibility. Maybe its the fear that you dont deserve it. Its the fear of
criticism. Fear will destroy your life, if you let it. But you can choose to resist the
discouragement. Say, God help me get my eyes off the problem off the circumstance and
keep my eyes on You. Tension is a warning light that you have taken your eyes off the Lord.
When you get tense, its God saying, Youve lost your focus. Thou wilt keep him in perfect
peace whose mind is stayed on Thee.
Resist the devil and his discouragement. Recognize where its coming from The answer may be
just around the corner. Anybody who watches basketball knows that the game is often won in the
final second.

Pray this prayer: Heavenly Father, I thank You that Your work done Your way will not lack Your
support. I thank You that You can use me in a significant way. Lord, help me have a new vision
and new inspiration that comes, not from motivation or psychology, but from knowing You. Help
me realize that sometimes You have to make me lie down in green pastures in order to get my
attention. Help me spend some time by those still waters that will restore my soul. Lord, I look to
You for strength. I thank You that for whatever it is that Youve called me to do You will bring
it to pass. I thank You that I can be confident of this, that You who began a good work in my life
will bring it to completion in the day of Christ. In Jesus name. Amen.