Coping with Discouragement (Psalms 42-43)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, October 9, 2022

Mark has worked two jobs most of his adult life just to make ends meet. He has three children and a wife who works in the home and has a part-time job outside the home. Recently Mark lost the higher paying of his two jobs. If that weren’t enough, their older son was suspended from school the same week, having drugs in his possession. Mark blames himself for not being at home enough.

Lila is a young woman who has been out of college and in the workforce for almost five years.

All her college friends are married, and she longs for a husband and family. This is all she has

ever dreamed of. She had a relationship for almost seven years with a Christian high school

sweetheart. She blames herself for the breakup, and wonders, What if? She sits at home most

nights alone in her tiny apartment. A married friend is worried sick about her and doesn’t

know how to help her.^[1]

I received a question about how we are to respond to discouragement.

My theme today is:

We cope with discouragement by looking to God for help.

Discouragement:
1. The word discouragement comes from the root word courage. The prefix dis- means “the opposite of.”[2]
1. Discouragement is the opposite of courage.
Those discouraged need encouraged.
Learn from the Psalmist:
1. I believe the best place in Scripture in which we see an example of discouragement and a good response is Psalms 42 and 43.
1. Psalms 42 and 43:

Psalm 42:title–43:5 (ESV)

Why Are You Cast Down, O My Soul?

42 To the choirmaster. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah.

¹ As a deer pants for flowing streams,

so pants my soul for you, O God.

² My soul thirsts for God,

for the living God.

When shall I come and appear before God?

³ My tears have been my food

day and night,

while they say to me all the day long,

“Where is your God?”

⁴ These things I remember,

as I pour out my soul:

how I would go with the throng

and lead them in procession to the house of God

with glad shouts and songs of praise,

a multitude keeping festival.

⁵ Why are you cast down, O my soul,

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,

my salvation ⁶and my God.

My soul is cast down within me;

therefore I remember you

from the land of Jordan and of Hermon,

from Mount Mizar.

⁷ Deep calls to deep

at the roar of your waterfalls;

all your breakers and your waves

have gone over me.

⁸ By day the Lord commands his steadfast love,

and at night his song is with me,

a prayer to the God of my life.

⁹ I say to God, my rock:

“Why have you forgotten me?

Why do I go mourning

because of the oppression of the enemy?”

¹⁰ As with a deadly wound in my bones,

my adversaries taunt me,

while they say to me all the day long,

“Where is your God?”

¹¹ Why are you cast down, O my soul,

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,

my salvation and my God.

Send Out Your Light and Your Truth

43 Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause

against an ungodly people,

from the deceitful and unjust man

deliver me!

² For you are the God in whom I take refuge;

why have you rejected me?

Why do I go about mourning

because of the oppression of the enemy?

³ Send out your light and your truth;

let them lead me;

let them bring me to your holy hill

and to your dwelling!

⁴ Then I will go to the altar of God,

to God my exceeding joy,

and I will praise you with the lyre,

O God, my God.

⁵ Why are you cast down, O my soul,

and why are you in turmoil within me?

Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,

my salvation and my God.

Let’s talk about these Psalms and how the Psalmist responded to discouragement.
- First, in Psalm 42 we see a longing expressed as thirst (verses 1-5).By the way, many think David wrote this, others think it is just the sons of Korah.Korah was a Levite who led a rebellion against Moses (Numbers 16:1-35). He was killed, but his descendants remained faithful to God and continued to serve God in the Temple. David appointed men from the clan of Korah to serve as choir leaders (1 Chronicles 6:31-38), and they continued to be Temple musicians for hundreds of years (2 Chronicles 20:18-19).So, here we are. The writer of the Psalm has faced some trials and seems to have been on the run.In the first 5 verses we see him longing for God.He compares his longing for God to being really thirsty.His tears have been his food, either literally or figuratively.He used to lead the procession to the temple.Regardless, he clings to hope in God. We see this in Psalm 42:5 and Psalm 43:5: Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation ⁶and my God.Next, we see his Longing expressed in discouragement (verses 6-11).What satisfies us during difficult times?Some people stress eat, but it seems like this Psalmist goes to God.Can we stand strong in our faith in difficult times?The Psalmist is talking to himself, there is a lesson there. Notice what he says is Psalm 42:11: Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.In Psalm 43:1-5 we see his longing expressed in prayer.The Psalmist responds in prayer.It is okay to talk honestly to God.Look at Psalm 43:1: Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!Look at verse 2, the Psalmist trusts in God: For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you rejected me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?Yet, the Psalmist prays to the Lord about how he feels. He feels rejected.The Psalmist makes a request in verse 3.In verse 5, The Psalmist reminds himself again to hope in God. Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
- The Psalmist reminds himself where He gets his salvation.
Ways to cope
- First, some applications:
  - We need to be like the Psalmist in Psalms 42 and 43 and look to God (Ps 42:5, 11; 43:5).We need to go to God like the Psalmist in Psalms 42 and 43.We need to talk to ourselves as it appears that the Psalmist did in Psalms 42 and 43.We need to remind ourselves that we can hope in God (Ps 42:5, 11; 43:5).We need to remind ourselves of truth.We need to use reason with ourselves.
    We must refocus ourselves.We need to long for God as we see the Psalmist do in Psalm 42.
  Further ways to cope:JournalPray with other believers (Prov 27:17; Ecc 4:9-12).Meditate on ScriptureMeditate on the promises of God. Remember Romans 8:28: And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.Be realistic: Understand that discouragement is a part of life and often is a result of things or events that are out of our control. This does not mean that we are failures.^[4]Give discouragement to God: When we have confidence in Him, we gain confidence in ourselves. God sees events before we do.^[5]Rethink goals: maybe they need to change.Get rid of “What Ifs”: one writes: Stop considering what might have been. This type of thinking will only bring defeat.^[6]
- Don’t focus on feelings.

Chuck Swindoll writes:

Let me be downright practical and tell you what I do. First I remind myself early in the morning and on several occasions during the day, “God, You are at work, and You are in control. And, Lord God, You know this is happening. You were there at the beginning, and You will bring everything that occurs to a conclusion that results in Your greater glory in the end.” And then? Then (and only then!) I relax. From that point on, it really doesn’t matter all that much what happens. It is in God’s hands.

I love the story of the man who had fretted for fifteen years over his work. He had built his business from nothing into a rather sizable operation. In fact, he had a large plant that covered several acres. With growth and success, however, came ever-increasing demands. Each new day brought a whole new list of responsibilities. Weary of the worry, the stress, and the fear, he finally decided to give it all over to God. With a smile of quiet contentment, he prayed, “Lord God, the business is Yours. All the worry, the stress, and the fears I release to You and Your sovereign will. From this day forward, Lord, You own this business.” That night he went to bed earlier than he had since he started the business. Finally . . . peace.

In the middle of the night the shrill ring of the phone awoke the man. The caller, in a panicked voice, yelled, “Fire! The entire place is going up in smoke!” The man calmly dressed, got into his car and drove to the plant. With his hands in his pockets he stood there and watched, smiling slightly. One of his employees hurried to his side and said, “What in the world are you smiling about? How can you be so calm? Everything’s on fire!” The man answered, “Yesterday afternoon I gave this business to God. I told Him it was His. If He wants to burn it up, that’s His business.”[8]

I love that illustration. Many times we are discouraged because we hold things too tightly.

We must always surrender to God.

John Piper shares:

We must learn to fight despondency — the downcast spirit. The fight is a fight of faith in future grace. It is fought by preaching truth to ourselves about God and his promised future.

This is what the psalmist does in Psalm 42. The psalmist preaches to his troubled soul. He scolds himself and argues with himself. And his main argument is future grace: “Hope in God! Trust in what God will be for you in the future. A day of praise is coming. The presence of the Lord will be all the help you need. And he has promised to be with us forever.”

Martyn Lloyd-Jones believes this issue of preaching truth to ourselves about God’s future grace is all-important in overcoming spiritual depression. In his helpful book, Spiritual Depression, he writes,

Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Take those thoughts that come to you the moment you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them, but they start talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc. Somebody is talking. . . . Your self is talking to you. Now this man’s treatment [in Psalm 42] was this: instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says, “Self, listen for a moment. I will speak to you.” (20–21)

The battle against despondency is a battle to believe the promises of God. And that belief in God’s future grace comes by hearing the word. And so preaching to ourselves the word of God is at the heart of the battle.[9]

Pray.

^[1] Tim Clinton and Ron Hawkins, The Quick-Reference Guide to Biblical Counseling: Personal and Emotional Issues (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2009), 80.

[2] https://www.gotquestions.org/overcoming-discouragement.html

[3] Tim Clinton and Ron Hawkins, The Quick-Reference Guide to Biblical Counseling: Personal and Emotional Issues (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2009), 80–84.

^[4] Tim Clinton and Ron Hawkins, The Quick-Reference Guide to Biblical Counseling: Personal and Emotional Issues (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2009), 82.

^[5] Ibid.

^[6] Ibid.

^[7] Ibid.

[8] Swindoll, Charles R.. Laugh Again (pp. 40-41). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

[9] https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/preach-to-yourself?utm_campaign=Daily%20Email&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=91588167&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9byegk5HCvwgLAcA6FSp13GQYIMBcxphqoImqihZFFHoLjZt3EoX1CrepJyrH5_c9VBgkCHbe-KSllVX1IQcmLPiWRUQ&utm_content=91588167&utm_source=hs_email