Battling discouragement

Some time in the middle of the night last night, I began having pain in my neck and shoulder which I know is a result of irritating muscles around a ruptured disc I have in my neck. It may have been irritated by my walk around White Rock yesterday, running errands with an ill-fitting back pack on, or it may have had more to do with me falling asleep in the bathtub during the evening, in an uncomfortable position, while reading a Harry Potter novel (and luckily I didn't douse the book!) Whatever the cause, I awoke with pain, and limited ability to move my neck, around 4:30. That is still night in my book. Add that to this week's interesting development of extremely tender feet and ankles for no known reason, and I was rather miserable.

At 5:15 I rose to heat my oat bag for my neck, and eat a banana so I could take a handful of ibuprofen (well, only 3 actually), and then crawled back into bed feeling utterly discouraged. Here I am, I thought, finished with treatments for almost three weeks, supposed to be improving, and I am miserable! That's when I started feeling sorry for myself, and had a little self-pity cry time.

Dave was awake by this time (though in truth, this is close to his normal time for rising), and I asked him, "So what are your weapons for battling feeling discouraged? What do you do?" His answer was simple, but profound. He said, "I try to think of all the things I should be thankful for."

Amen.

Count your blessings. What could be simpler? The truth is, once you start really thinking about all you have to be grateful for, all that God has given you that you didn't deserve, you may not feel any better physically, but your heart is cheered. The hard part is getting out of the pit of self-pity long enough to remember what you should do to wage war against the discouragement! So here are a few things I was thankful for in the wee hours of this morning:
*For a God who is wise, powerful, just, holy, good, merciful and true
*For salvation through Christ when I didn't do a thing to either deserve or earn it
*For my pain as a reminder of the temporary and broken nature of this present reality
*For the promise of a perfect future where every pain is gone and every tear is dried
*For a godly and loving husband
*For four wonderful children who love the Lord
*For a loving extended family
*For a church family that cares about one another and seeks to represent Christ
*For a pastor who preaches consistently the truth of the Scriptures
*For the opportunity to teach young people about this world the Lord has created
*For waking up and breathing

What ways do you battle discouragement? Well, the old "Count your blessings" is a good tool to that end.

When upon life’s billows you are tempest tossed,
When you are discouraged, thinking all is lost,
Count your many blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Refrain

Count your blessings, name them one by one,
Count your blessings, see what God hath done!
Count your blessings, name them one by one,
And it will surprise you what the Lord hath done.

Are you ever burdened with a load of care?
Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear?
Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly,
And you will keep singing as the days go by.

Refrain

When you look at others with their lands and gold,
Think that Christ has promised you His wealth untold;
Count your many blessings. Wealth can never buy
Your reward in heaven, nor your home on high.

Refrain

So, amid the conflict whether great or small,
Do not be disheartened, God is over all;
Count your many blessings, angels will attend,
Help and comfort give you to your journey’s end.

Refrain

~Johnson Oatman, Jr