How To Encourage Others When You’re Feeling Discouraged

Can you think of someone who’s in need of help today? Perhaps there’s someone you know who’s in harm’s way and is in desperate need for protection. Maybe your heart has been telling you to be an encouragement to someone when, in fact, you’re going through some sort of difficulty yourself. You’re probably tired. Exhausted. Spread thin. Waiting for answers. How then can you be an encouragement to someone else? It’s probably the last thing on your mind. But then, you just can’t seem to shake off whatever’s been tugging at your heart strings to take action. You know that deep down, there’s always someone else who’s in a much worse situation than you. I’m here to share how to encourage others when you’re feeling discouraged, exhausted, or overwhelmed.

How To Encourage Others

Personally, I find it difficult to be an encouragement when I could use a little bit of that encouragement myself. By God’s grace, I don’t need to frantically look around or even wait around to find encouragement. The Bible is full of God’s promises and reminders that we can completely depend on Him for anything and everything.

So here are 3 basic steps that I’d like to share with you regarding encouraging others (including yourself):

1. Go to the Source
2. Be a channel instead of a source of encouragement
3. Direct others to the Source

Go to the Source

While appreciating the photo that we shared in this post in hopes that we could one day take similar landscape astrophotography shots ourselves (since God blessed us with a new camera the other day), God directed me to Psalm 127. As we lift up our eyes to appreciate the beautiful horizon and vistas, let’s not forget to remember and praise the One Who created them. In addition, He is our one true Source of help and protection. To find encouragement, it is important for us to know the Source so we can go directly to Him.

God is our Source of help

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth.

Psalm 121: 1-2 KJV

He is our Source of protection

The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.

Psalm 121:8 KJV

 

Be a channel vs. source of encouragement

While I don’t believe we’re called to be the source of encouragement for others, it’s clear in the Bible that we should be a channel of God’s encouragement.

Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2 KJV

It can be challenging (and draining) when people start mistakenly looking to ourselves as a source of encouragement. To relieve us of this burden, we must recognize that we’re but channels of God’s encouragement and it is only through His power that we’re able to do what we do for Him in spite of ourselves (which includes our fatigue, exhaustion, etc.).

Direct others to the Source

Direct others to the Source through prayer and/or sharing God’s Word and what He has done for you. For starters, why not share Psalm 121 with them?

When others start profusely thanking us for being an encouragement, we must remember to direct them back to the Source–back to God–so that we do not take the glory away from Him.

There are times when we may not even have the ability to be an encouragement in person. There are times when we may not even be able to reach out. By God’s grace, God has given us the ability to pray for others at any time, despite our own circumstances. He listens to our prayers and is pleased when we pray for others, whether or not those people are aware that we’re praying for them. The most important thing is, God knows, God listens, and God is able.

Application

In my own exhaustion and fatigue, this is what God revealed to me today when I spent some quiet time with Him:

When God moves your heart about someone in need, go to Him in prayer and ask how He would like to use you as a channel of His blessing. Just wait on Him and He will show you how to encourage others and direct them back to Him. Lift up your eyes and continue looking up to Him!

Be inspired and encouraged: If you haven’t read the full chapter of Psalm 121, why not check it out today? If you’d like to have God as your Heavenly Father, this page tells you how. We hope you won’t delay.

God bless you!

JD