Me:  What happened Prodigal?

 

Prodigal:  I fell, and now I am down and discouraged.

 

Me:  We all get discourage now and then.  We all run low on hope.  I do have some encouragement for you though.

 

Prodigal:  Please tell me because I am in need of it today.

 

Charles Swindoll in his book Hope Again tells how to cope during these times.

 

Two words will help you cope when you run low on hope:  accept and trust.

Accept the mystery of hardship, suffering, misfortune, or mistreatment.  Don’t try to understand it or explain it.  Accept it.  Then, deliberately trust God to protect you by His power from this very moment to the dawning of eternity.

Why did God allow this to happen to you?  How many times have you asked God that question?  I know it is hard to accept.  Why can’t it be different?  We just have to accept at this point.  Maybe you tried to accept but you need to keep accepting it for the rest of the week.

Then remember that we can trust God.  We trust God in the hardship.  We trust God when we can’t understand.  We TRUST GOD.

Take a penny and look at it.  What does it say?  Trust in God.  Put it in your pocket and look at it everyday for next 7 days.  Trust.  That is your next step.  TRUST.

 

Galatians 3:6  Consider Abraham: “He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

 

Jennifer Van Allen

 

www.faithincounseling.org

www.theprodigalpig.com