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Deflect Despair

Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.  1 Corinthians 15:57

 

There is a story about Martin Luther going through a period of discouragement and depression. For days, his long face darkened the family table and dampened the family's home life. One day his wife came to the breakfast table all dressed in black, as if she were going to a funeral. When Martin asked her who had died, she replied, "Martin, the way you've been behaving lately, I thought God had died, so I came prepared to attend His funeral."

Her gentle but effective rebuke drove straight to Luther's heart, and as a result the great Reformer resolved to never again allow worldly cares, resentment, depression, discouragement, or frustration to defeat him. By God's grace, he vowed, he would submit his life to the Savior and reflect His grace in a spirit of rejoicing, whatever came.

When was the last time you praised God in the midst of despair? Don't wait until you feel like it, or you'll never do it. Do it, and then you'll feel like it!

From, HOPE for Each Day: Morning & Evening Devotions, by Billy Graham.