How Do Pastors Encourage Themselves in the Lord

What does a pastor do when he gets discouraged and maybe even a bit depressed?  In most cases he is not able to go to his church members and often it is difficult to find a faithful biblical counselor to listen and help.  So many times the pastor’s first and best option is to seek to encourage himself in the Lord, but how does he do that?

David has always been known as the man after God’s own heart.  Though David was not perfect by any means, he became this kind of man, in my opinion, because when he was confronted with his sin, he immediately sought to make it right with no excuses given.  Yet even David in all his greatness still had moments where he was depressed and discouraged and had no other human being to lift him up.  Such is the case in 1 Samuel 30.

The land of Israel had never been fully conquered as God had commanded to be done and as a result there were pagan groups which were still occupying the rightful possession of the God’s people.  Because of this David had chosen to lead a band of his people in driving out these groups.  This group followed him seemingly being very content with this action even though he was not the king as of that point in 1 Samuel 30.   They willingly let him lead them into battle time and time again and were rejoicing in the results.  During this, David also knew that battle was not a good place for families and so he encouraged the men to leave their families in the seemingly safe place of Ziklag while the “army” went to battle, which must have also endeared him to the people as it showed his concern for their wives and children.  Also in context of 1 Samuel 30, David was very confident that Achish, the king of the Philistines, would be a good friend and aid to him and his people, as David had supported Achish on numerous occasions and David believed he could count on that friendship to aid at any time.

But the events of 1 Samuel 29 & 30 show a very different situation which required David to find comfort in God alone.  First, David’s “friend” Acish decides to listen to the Philistine people who hatred David and the Acish refuses to help David and even sends him away empty handed in 1 Samuel 29.  Then, in 1 Samuel 30, when the people return to Ziklag, they find that their wives and children have been taken captive by the Amalekites while they have been away at battle.  Now mind you, this also includes David’s own family and even the city which had been a haven was burned to the ground leaving no safe haven for all the people.  

At this point David is truly in a dark place as his friend has turned against him and his family has been taken from him, but the story doesn’t end there.  The people are so grieved that they only could think of doing one thing - killing David.  So in other words, in the midst of David’s great sorrow, the people who he has been leading can think only of their own feelings and turn on David completely.

How many times do people seemingly turn on those who are trying to ministry to them?  To be honest, if you are a pastor/missionary for any length of time then you know what it means to have someone whom you have poured your heart and life into then turn around and blame you for their state, or, at the very least, get angry that you did not fix their mess.  That is the case we find in 1 Samuel 30.  David had sought to lead these people rightly and now they blame him for the failure and they seem to forget he is suffering as well.  At that moment of their grief, his grief means nothing.

So what did David do?  Look at 1 Samuel 30:6 - “…David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.”  David had no person who he could turn to at that time but he needed to be encouraged.  He could not turn to his friend Jonathan because Saul was still seeking to kill David and anyone who helped him was also sought.  He could not turn to his own family because they had been taken captive.  He could not turn to his friend King Acish for support as he had kicked David out of his country.  He could not turn to the people whom he was leading because they were blaming him for their grief.  So David did the one thing that every pastor must do from time to time - encourage himself in the Lord alone.

So what did he do in this encouragement?

1. He got alone with God.  In 1 Samuel 30:7 & 8, David got the linen ephod, the symbol of dedication and separation to God.  David then went alone into the Lord’s presence.  David sought the Lord before he did anything else.  I pray that is our first step when we are discouraged or lonely - GET ALONE WITH YOUR GOD! 
2. He did not allow himself to feel sorry for himself.  No where do you find David whining or crying about his condition.  I am convinced that this is also part of what made him “the man after God’s own heart.”  He does not pout or isolate himself from God or the people. 
3. He planned a future.  In verse 8, David asks God about going after the captives and their capturers.  He does not ask God to intervene with the people but whether he should intervene and what the outcome will be.  He clearly does not want to lead the people into another defeat but he also does not plan to just sit down and wait.  He knows there is a future no matter what happens regarding his family or the people following him.
4. He does not blame the people for the situation and their reaction to it.  This is the one that amazes me - NO WHERE does he get angry or disillusioned at the people.  It seems that he clearly understands that they are hurt, that their reactions are being driven by that hurt, and he seeks to help them and himself by moving forward.
5. He leads the people into battle.  David recognized that the people needed victory and he lead them in that.  He did not feel sorry for himself and his situation.  Instead he put his armor on and went and rescued the captives.  He also seems to realize that the victory of retaking the captives requires him working with the very people who were thinking about killing him.  Does call a pastor to work with people who always agree with him or to work with people who have needs and he is called to help them with those needs?

To be honest, this study has truly hit home to me today.  So often, I will desire to just sit and lick my wounds, so to speak, whenever there is a negative situation in the ministry.  My flesh feels that I have a right to simply feel sorry for myself and do nothing more…..but that is not being encouraged in the Lord, is it?