Defeating Discouragement

"Defeating Discouragement" was the title of the Sunday School lesson yesterday.  Thanks to Matt and his off weekend, he stayed home with Caylee and I was able to attend SS.  The lesson yesterday was too good not to share...

So, our teacher is going to cover several points on what can cause discouragement, but yesterday's theme was Fatigue...how appropriate!  (Not just for tired new moms, but for everyone, especially this time of year)

The passage we studied was Numbers 11
*This first thing to note was that the Israelites were having to move again, this is part of their time in the wilderness for the 40 years.  They were complaining to God and He became angry with them. (vs 1-3)  God was angry because He had been showing the people over and over who He was, His power, etc... their complaining provoked God to anger. 
   God holds us accountable for what He reveals to us
So the first thing to consider, is what has God shown to you?  For me, this year in particular, it has been that He will provide.  Therefore, if I doubt His provisions I could very easily make Him mad, because time and time again He has shown me that He will provide what I need.  Looking back through the year I have seen God's provisions over and over again, from little things to big things.  Past behavior dictates future behavior.... so since I have seen God provide in the past, there is no reason for me to doubt His provisions in the future.

*The second thing to note in this passage is in vs 4-10.  My bible says 'the rabble'.  Our teacher explained that the rabble were the people who went with the Israelites, but who were not Israelites... they were the Egyptians (maybe others) who tagged along.  It says they began to complain about the food.  They were unhappy with God's provision of manna.  When they began to complain, the Israelites began to complain as well. (vs 10-"people of every family wailing, each at the entrance to his tent") First of all, think how funny (or embarrassing) it would be to see people wailing at the front of their tent, not privately but in public.  These people were not hungry, they were just being selfish and childish. 
    Be careful who influences you.
So consider this.... are you rabble?  Are you the person who complains because they don't get what they want?  Are you the person that causes a stir because something happened that didn't go your way?  I hope I am not.  But I know there are areas in my life that I complain a lot.  It's important to find the people that are the rabble and stay away from them.  You do not want their influence on your life, and if you are that person, you need to take a look at what you're complaining about and try to see the blessings instead. 

*Now we get to the fatigue part.... Moses was fatigued.  He was exhausted of the people's complaining, so He even began to question God. (vs 11-15)  Instead of God being angry with Him though, God provided help for Moses.  (vs 16-17). 
    God is gentle with weary servants
    Fatigue can blind us to what we really need
When we get to the point that we are so exhausted by a certain problem, person, etc it can blind us to simple solutions (like finding help from others in Moses' case).  If we turn to God during our exhaustion instead of complaining and rejecting God then He can help.  The Israelites did not turn to God, they turned against Him.  Moses took his problems straight to God.  Do you see the difference? 

Fatigue can be one cause of discouragement.  Moses was discouraged with the Israelites and with God bc he was so worn out from all the complaining.  Who does your complaining affect?  Whose complaining is affecting you?  These were some great thoughts to ponder... especially as life gets crazy around this time of year, but really for any time of the year too!  These brief notes don't do the lesson justice, but I hope there are some points you can learn from!