If we meet that voice while we are living in Camp Strong, we can easily dismiss it and be on our way. Our weapons of hope are intact and the circumstances of our life energize our campaign against the voice.
Today we consider Camp Slide where hope is slipping away and it is increasingly difficult to say no to the voices of defeat.
If you are in Camp Slide, the pain, though not yet unbearable, is beginning to exceed your weapon stash. More times in a day than not, you can't fully push away the thought of taking your life. There are moments when it has an attractiveness that puts a smokescreen on the horror of giving in.
If someone is aware of your plight, he or she might tell you to pray.
Let's be honest. Prayer is powerful but it doesn't always and automatically stop the pain. If you are in a losing battle with hopelessness, you need specifics to wrap your prayer around.God is always in the rescue business but if we can't see Him move visibly and fast, we sometimes succumb to the voices that echo that He doesn't care.
So consider these specifics that put you in motion while God is at work:
Dissect the voice(s) by writing down everything you hear. Create three columns on a page with these headings: (1) God's Voice, (2) Enemy Voices, and (3) People's Voices. Through the day, jot down thoughts that are at war with each other in your mind.
Ask God for a loophole through which you can more easily view the goodness of your life, the circumstances that do bring hope, and the thought of what the future could bring if the voices were quelled. Write down every iota of goodness and blessing in your life that you can muster.Light shed by writing is a power tool. The enemy works best in the silent crevasses of your mind, encouraging you to not tell as others might think this or that. The last thing enemy voices want is the shedding of light and the power of sharing in a notebook and with trusted others.
The words of goodness and blessing, even if the list is short, have the power to feed you hope, a spoonful at a time. A spoonful of hope, because Jesus is its Author, can counteract a huge weight of defeating voices.
Yes, they (the enemy voices) will probably return to the extent they think they are winning you over to their mission--the earthly defeat of hope. Keep moving by writing. Remember it is the tortoise pace that wins the day.
The power of the pages that separate the voices into distinct owners and remind you of goodness and blessing in your life is supernatural. It gathers a steam that the enemy fears most and puts you back on the path to Camp Strong.
Paper...pen...hope...please. Don't delay. The world needs you. I promise.
I know that because you--you--are fearfully and wonderfully made by the Author of Love and Hope.
