Encourage Yourself!

Encourage Yourself!

Discovering Grace Article

- A fresh word of encouragement to uplift your faith for action today

“But David encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” – 1 Samuel 30:6 AMPC

After an unintentional pause from writing, I am so encouraged now to be sitting here writing and building my own self up in the Lord, once again. I write to encourage myself first and foremost, and secondly, to encourage anyone who may come upon my writings or recordings in the future. So as you read this writing today, I hope you will be strengthened and encouraged as well as I will be. The Holy Spirit is always anxiously waiting to talk to us, and to teach us to understand all that God meant by what He said in His written Word, and even to bring to our remembrance all that Jesus, the Living Word, has spoken to us through the written Word in the past.

Today as I prayed and began to meditate in the Word of God, it was brought to my remembrance a very powerful principle and example from the Scriptures found in a story concerning David in the Old Testament. This powerful passage began to speak to me in new ways, as it describes the most important thing that David did when his life was tilted out of control. It was a dangerous time for him, as well as being a low point in his faith in God’s promise to him, and if those things weren’t bad enough, his life situation had left him in so much grief that he was no longer confident in what God wanted him to do. Hang on tight, my Friends, this ought to be good! Let’s begin with a little bit of back story.

Just before the story I wish to focus on today, we find that David had fled from the presence of Kind Saul, who had relentlessly pursued his life out of jealousy, and because he was tormented by evil spirits. Knowing that Saul would never give up until he had killed him, David decided to take 600 of his personal mighty army and go to the land of the Philistines, which were the enemies of Israel. David had believed that if he hid out in Philistine country, King Saul would eventually stop pursuing him. As suspected, this is exactly what happened.

I want us to notice, as we visit the following passage of Scripture, that David had become weary in this constant conflict with King Saul, who had made himself David’s enemy. David had cared for Saul and he especially loved his son Jonathan, and had no heart to fight with King Saul. This must have been a tremendous tear in the fabric of David’s servant heart. David was weary and wanted the conflict between him and Saul to end. Has the conflict or conflicts in your life ever gotten to the point that you felt you needed to do something yourself to find some place of peace and rest from the battle? You just want the conflict to stop, so you look for any solution, even if it is compromising one.

David knew from the time, as a younger lad, when Samuel had come to his home and anointed him in front of his brothers and his father, that God had made a promise that he would be the next king. At this point in David’s life, having spent much time fleeing from the madman Saul, the Scripture reveals that he reasoned in his heart that he was going to die, if he didn’t do something drastic. Here it is...

“But David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will despair of seeking me any more within the borders of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand.” – 1 Samuel 27:1 AMPC

This was David’s homemade solution… hide in the enemy’s camp! By now, David is tired and very weary. He is wondering if God’s promise to him about becoming Israel’s next king will ever come to pass. It’s hard to be a king, if you are dead! It would seem that David had lost faith, and decided to settle in the land of one of the enemies of God. This is what happens when we get tired of running, and running, and running, and never seeing a positive solution or even a hint of the finish line… we settle for “A Reasonable Alternative to Faith.”

Now, King Achish of Gath was very accommodating to David, so long as David helped him in his own battles. He had even given him and his army a small town to live in… Ziklag. However, when the Philistine lords and princes were assembling against Israel, they did not want David to fight along side of them anymore. They did not trust David, thinking that perhaps he might turn against them for the sake of his old master, Saul. For about a year and a half, David had faithfully fought along side of the Philistines, Israel’s enemy, and now they had turned their back on him and questioned his intentions. David was called in to see King Achish. Let’s follow the story to see what happens…

“Then Achish called David and said to him, As surely as the Lord lives, you have been honest and upright, and for you to go out and come in with me in the army is good in my sight; for I have found no evil in you from the day of your coming to me to this day. Yet the lords do not approve of you.

So return now and go peaceably, so as not to displease the Philistine lords.

David said to Achish, But what have I done? And what have you found in your servant as long as I have been with you to this day, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?

And Achish said to David, I know that you are as blameless in my sight as an angel of God; nevertheless the princes of the Philistines have said, He shall not go up with us to the battle.

So now rise up early in the morning, with your master’s servants who have come with you, and as soon as you are up and have light, depart.

So David and his men rose up early in the morning to return to the land of the Philistines. But the Philistines went up to Jezreel [to fight against Israel].” – 1 Samuel 29:6-11 AMPC

While David was hiding among the Philistines, outside of God’s actual will for him, I want us to notice how King Achish points out his character of honesty and integrity. In fact, the King has considered him blameless and like an angel of God. This is amazing that even though David had momentarily lost his faith, he did not forsake his integrity before God and before the King of Gath.

Whoa...wait a minute! “Gath!” Wasn’t this the same “Gath” that the giant Goliath was from? I find it fascinating, that David is hanging out with the same Philistine army that the Israelites pursued and defeated in the Valley of Elah after David took down their giant Goliath with a sling and a stone, and then cut off his head. So David had been serving the King of Gath and was faithful to him. What an interesting twist!

Even though David had pledged to serve loyally where he was residing, His God was never going to allow him to fight against those he was called to reign over as King. Though God saw David’s faithfulness to King Achish, even when He was living in fear of death and unbelief in God’s promise to him, I believe the Lord kept him from a battle that may have completely stolen his Divine destiny.

However, while David honored the King of Gath and returned home with his mighty men, not from battle, but from rejection, there was yet another attack that threatened his Divine destiny again. This time it was worse than he could have ever expected. Rejection paled in comparison to this. Have you noticed that the enemy doesn’t give up, but continues to threaten God’s good plan for our lives? It took the men three days to return to Ziklag, and this is what they found...

“Now when David and his men came home to Ziklag on the third day, they found that the Amalekites had made a raid on the South (the Negeb) and on Ziklag, and had struck Ziklag and burned it with fire,

And had taken the women and all who were there, both great and small, captive. They killed no one, but carried them off and went on their way.

So David and his men came to the town, and behold, it was burned, and their wives and sons and daughters were taken captive.

Then David and the men with him lifted up their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep.

David’s two wives also had been taken captive, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess and Abigail, the widow of Nabal the Carmelite." 1 Samuel 30:1-5 AMPC

David had seen a lifetime of war, but this attack against his home, his family and the families of his men was more than he could bear. Have you ever cried your eyes out until you had no more strength left in you to cry anymore? When things get this bad, no matter how far off the beaten path we have gone, there is still a God who listens and who cares and who has seen everything that has happened to us. While He is intimately aware of all that we have been through, He is not the cause, nor the One who permitted our calamity. It comforts me to know that there is nothing that takes God by surprise. There is no situation that knocks Him off of His throne and renders Him baffled and without a solution. We may feel like our situation is beyond the reach of salvation and turn around, but that is never the case. He is, after all, our Savior!

Though everything imaginable was against David, even his loyal friends and comrades, and he had seemingly lost everything, he had not lost his Divine assignment and destiny, and he had not lost the faithfulness of his God. Friends, this is where I want us to get to today. Pay careful attention! At David’s lowest point, let’s look at what he did...

“David was greatly distressed, for the men spoke of stoning him because the souls of them all were bitterly grieved, each man for his sons and daughters. But David encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord his God.” – 1 Samuel 30:6 AMPC

This is the key, my Friends… Encouragement and strength to handle the toughest battles in life come from our time in relationship with the Lord, our history with Him. David encouraged himself and strengthened himself in the Lord his God.

I have had many nights where I cried myself to sleep, or I cried until there were no tears left in me and there was only that awkward silence. I remember a night like this when my own father passed away suddenly, with no warning and years before his time. I cried so hard that I felt like I could no longer breathe. There was certainly no strength left in me. Many of you have experienced great, unexplainable, unimaginable, and unexpected loss. If you haven’t experienced this yet, you will. We live in very dangerous times, we have an enemy called Satan who hates humanity, and life can be simply unfair. These are things we all deal with in this fallen world, while we await the Lord’s coming for us in the clouds.

So, whether you have a relationship with God through the Lord Jesus Christ, or you really need one, this will always be your answer to any challenge…

Encourage and strengthen yourself in the Lord your God.

Now, I am an avid question asker! I tend to not appreciate a blanket statement without an explanation. This is what makes me a teacher, as teachers like to explain. So, the statement, “Encourage and strengthen yourself in the Lord your God,” deserves a question. Just exactly how do we do this? How do we encourage ourselves in the Lord? It cannot merely be about prayer, because the Scripture reveals that it was “after” David had cried, and encouraged and strengthened himself in the Lord, that he “inquired of the Lord” for wisdom and direction. His “ask” came after the strengthening.

“David said to Abiathar the priest, Ahimelech’s son, I pray you, bring me the ephod. And Abiathar brought him the ephod.

And David inquired of the Lord, saying...” – 1 Samuel 30:7-8 AMPC

This is a critical moment. This is one of those times where you don’t want to waste any time. And yet, Proverbs 19:2 (NLT) tells us that, “Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes.” Yes, lives were on the line, and a timely decision was important. So, what did David do? He took time to encourage and strengthen himself. This may seem selfish, but sometimes stepping away from a situation and other people is necessary. It may not seem like the right time or the right move in the eyes of others, but the one trained in the ways of the Lord, knows that this is the critical moment, this is the needful thing, this is what will bring forth the clarity necessary for the desired results. It’s an important individual moment. I call it a “Cause for Pause.” It’s that all important time to gather yourself and to regain clarity in the midst of chaos. Do not skip this important time, my Friend. You need it!

It’s interesting that when you look up the Hebrew word for “encourage or strengthen,” which is châzaq, it means “to fasten upon, hence to seize.” So, when you seize something, you are taking a hold of it forcefully. Besides the main definition, here are some other words that Strong’s uses that bring out the meaning that could be applied: fortify, obstinate (this is that stubborn resolve), conquer, cleave, force, make hard, be recovered. I especially like this one: be the man!

So how did David actually encourage himself in the Lord his God? How did he collect his strength? From where did his clarity of mind emerge? I get the picture that he grabbed a hold of himself forcefully and slapped himself in the face a few times. He probably stomped around and spoke forcefully like he did back in the day with Goliath, “Who are these uncircumcised (Amalakites,) to defy the armies of the Living God? How dare they come against God’s covenant people!” David rose up in his remembrance of all that God had done for him before. When you read through the Psalms, you discover many of David’s recollections of his deliverance's through the Lord his God, and you hear him declare that strong trust in a God who delivers when we call to Him. I wonder if this is one of those Psalms that he wrote following this awful situation…

“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears and rescues them from all their troubles.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” – Psalm 34:17-18 NASB

When we know and understand how his situation played out in the end, we can find the same trust and confidence in the Lord that David discovered. The real secret is that David had learned to trust in God’s deliverance when he was a young boy. We can learn to believe in and trust the Lord at any time of our life, but when children are taught to believe and trust in God early in life, the results will follow them into adulthood.

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” – Proverbs 22:6 NKJV

This is a very important point, and I have proven it in the lives of my own children, who were raised early to have that child-like faith in the Lord. Now, listen to how the young David describes himself and his confidence in the Lord during this verbal exchange he had with King Saul when he volunteered to take on the giant Goliath in one of Israel’s earlier battles with the Philistines. Take a look…

“And Saul said to David, You are not able to go to fight against this Philistine. You are only an adolescent, and he has been a warrior from his youth.

And David said to Saul, Your servant kept his father’s sheep. And when there came a lion or again a bear and took a lamb out of the flock,

I went out after it and smote it and delivered the lamb out of its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard and smote it and killed it.

Your servant killed both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God!

David said, The Lord Who delivered me out of the paw of the lion and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David, Go, and the Lord be with you!” – 1 Samuel 17: 33-37 AMPC

Wow! Such confidence! King Saul only saw an adolescent who was nothing but an inexperienced warrior, but David saw the Lord’s mighty hand conquering through him. David had a deliverer, and that is all he needed. You see, David had seen God work in his life as a young boy in protecting him and the flocks as he served his father in the field. This experience of seeing God deliver him out of an impossible situation is what gave David the confidence he needed to defeat a defiant and demonized giant. No lion, bear, or giant was too big for his God. This confidence he had in his God, based upon his experience and his trusting relationship with God, was about to return to his remembrance and give him just the strength and encouragement he would need to face this new life altering experience.

So how did David encourage and strengthen himself in the Lord his God? He traveled back into his memory of all that God had previously done, for him and through him. He forcefully seized upon his confidence in the faithfulness of his covenant-keeping God. David may have found himself in a place that seriously challenged his faith, but it was easy to turn his faith back around when he recalled every time God had been faithful to him in the past. Look Friends, you can do this too. You can go back in time and remember all that the Lord has done for you personally.

But even if you are so taken by grief or confusion in your current life situation, that you are having trouble finding a memory to anchor your faith to, this one deliverance is the only one you need to cling to. Seize onto this one fact and encourage yourself in the Lord. I am talking about the greatest deliverance you have ever experienced from the Lord. This happened when the greater descendant of David came down and defeated the greater Goliath. This is when the Only Begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ, came down to earth in order to stand in our place for judgment, to be punished in our place for every sin, and to defeat the one who held the power of sin and death. Don’t take my word for it, let’s look together at what these Scriptures declare that Jesus did for us...

"And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." – Philippians 2:8 ESV

"He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed." – 1 Peter 2:24 ESV

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,” - Hebrews 2:14 ESV

If this is the first time you have ever heard what God has done for you to deliver you from sin, Satan, and death, I want you to look at one more amazing passage of Scripture. You have been delivered, my Friend, and all you have to do is believe it.

“While we were yet in weakness [powerless to help ourselves], at the fitting time Christ died for (in behalf of) the ungodly.

Now it is an extraordinary thing for one to give his life even for an upright man, though perhaps for a noble and lovable and generous benefactor someone might even dare to die.

But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us.

Therefore, since we are now justified (acquitted, made righteous, and brought into right relationship with God) by Christ’s blood, how much more [certain is it that] we shall be saved by Him from the indignation and wrath of God.

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, it is much more [certain], now that we are reconciled, that we shall be saved (daily delivered from sin’s dominion) through His [resurrection] life.” – Romans 5:6-10 AMPC

Yes, just being reminded of all that we have been delivered from by the blood of Jesus should be enough for us to encourage and strengthen ourselves in the Lord our God. What a mighty deliverance we have had from sin and its power, from guilt, from punishment and the fear of it, from the power and authority of Satan (that evil task-master), and from death itself.

(If you have never received Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, we encourage you to read the article Get Saved Now... Ask Questions Later.)

So now, any time we are faced with any problem, no matter how serious, we can draw upon our remembrance. We can draw from our remembrance how our Lord came through for us in some previous personal victory, but most importantly, we can draw upon His greatest deliverance of all. Having experienced such a great deliverance through the Lord Jesus Christ over sin, Satan and death, we ought to be able to forcefully shake ourselves back into a place of faith that the Lord who delivered us from such great peril, will not leave us wallowing in our tears and lacking direction or hope for a better future, regardless of the circumstance we are currently in. There is a deliverance that can be sought and trusted in. Listen to this…

“And those whom He thus foreordained, He also called; and those whom He called, He also justified (acquitted, made righteous, putting them into right standing with Himself). And those whom He justified, He also glorified [raising them to a heavenly dignity and condition or state of being].

What then shall we say to [all] this? If God is for us, who [can be] against us? [Who can be our foe, if God is on our side?]

He who did not withhold or spare [even] His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also with Him freely and graciously give us all [other] things?” – Romans 8:30-32 AMPC

Just like with David, we must come to a place that we can believe and trust in the delivering and gracious heart of God, our Father. He did not withhold His own Son, the only one qualified to save us, and there is nothing of lesser value than His own Son that He has withheld from us, either.

“From the LORD comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people.” – Psalm 3:8 NIV

Once we have forcefully seized upon our faith and confidence in the Lord, by having encouraged and strengthened ourselves, and reminding ourselves of His faithfulness in every circumstance, we can now go to Him in prayer and inquire of the Lord with confidence.

“And David inquired of the Lord, saying, Shall I pursue this troop? Shall I overtake them? The Lord answered him, Pursue, for you shall surely overtake them and without fail recover all.” – 1 Samuel 30:8 AMPC

Any time we are faced with a circumstance that we feel is too big for us or a pressing life decision, we want to know, “What do I do, Lord? Do I pursue? Do I move forward? Will I have success, if I do?” Most of us truly want to know the mind of the Lord. What David really wanted to know is whether his God would be with him and help him, despite his weakness. Notice that God answers him, and He will answer you also. So, after encouraging himself in the Lord, David moves forward in asking for guidance and direction. We can have confidence that if David (an Old Covenant saint) can receive a direct answer from the Lord his God, how much more will those of us who are in the New Covenant of grace and filled with the very presence of the Holy Spirit within, be able to hear and receive instruction… “Do I pursue? Or do I not? Will I have success?”

“And this is the confidence (the assurance, the privilege of boldness) which we have in Him: [we are sure] that if we ask anything (make any request) according to His will (in agreement with His own plan), He listens to and hears us.

And if (since) we [positively] know that He listens to us in whatever we ask, we also know [with settled and absolute knowledge] that we have [granted us as our present possessions] the requests made of Him.” – 1 John 5:14-15 AMPC

Look, the enemy wants to derail our purpose and our Divine destiny and assignments from the Lord. When he comes against our homes, our possessions, our marriages or our children, you can bet that God will have us “pursue.” If God has purposely planned good works for us to walk in, then He surely is not going to let any of His enemies stand in His way. He did not allow David to join the battle against those he was called to serve and be King over, and He will not allow the devil to steal our Divine destiny either, so long as we are willing to submit to Him and His guidance.

“For we are His workmanship [His own master work, a work of art], created in Christ Jesus [reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, ready to be used] for good works, which God prepared [for us] beforehand [taking paths which He set], so that we would walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us].” – Ephesians 2:10 AMP

I want to encourage you to take comfort in His grace, that even if you have lost your faith in something God has promised, or found yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time, or have made a decision not inspired or led by the Holy Spirit, God will still answer our requests for direction and wisdom when we seek Him. We will be led of the Lord to “pursue” what He tells us to pursue. He will tell us what to pursue, or when to pursue, or whether we should not pursue. He will give us success when we place our trust in His guidance, and in the end… “and without fail recover all.”

Oh yes, and that, dear Friends, is grace!

As it turns out, David did recover all that had been stolen. David did step into his Divine destiny, despite all of his struggles in life. And every time David inquired of the Lord, things worked together for his good. This is God’s promise to His children, born-again with the Holy Spirit of His Son…

“And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose.” – Romans 8:28 AMP

I hope you were encouraged and strengthened in your faith and have determined that whatever enemy comes your way and tries to mess with God’s good plans for your life, that you will first, encourage and strengthen yourself in the Lord your God, and finally, inquire of Him whether to “pursue.” Most of the time, He will have us run “to” the battle, use our authority in Jesus name, and take back what belongs to Christ. If it belongs to us, whether it is our peace, our possessions, our marriages, our children, our health, or our Divine destiny, whatever is important to us and whatever belongs to us by God, belongs to Christ. He will keep what we entrust to Him. ( 2 Timothy 1:12)

I would like to end this article with my favorite Psalm. It is a Psalm of David…

“I will praise the Lord at all times. I will constantly speak his praises.

I will boast only in the Lord; let all who are helpless take heart.

Come, let us tell of the Lord’s greatness; let us exalt his name together.

I prayed to the Lord, and he answered me. He freed me from all my fears.

Those who look to him for help will be radiant with joy; no shadow of shame will darken their faces.

In my desperation I prayed, and the Lord listened; he saved me from all my troubles.

For the angel of the Lord is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him.

Taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

Fear the Lord, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need.

Even strong young lions sometimes go hungry, but those who trust in the Lord will lack no good thing.

Come, my children, and listen to me, and I will teach you to fear the Lord.

Does anyone want to live a life that is long and prosperous?

Then keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies!

Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it.

The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help.

But the Lord turns his face against those who do evil; he will erase their memory from the earth.

The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.

For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken!

Calamity will surely destroy the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be punished.

But the Lord will redeem those who serve him. No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.” – Psalm 34 NLT

written by

Eileen R. Jacobs (July, 2025)

Copyright © 2025 Eileen Jacobs Ministries. All rights reserved.

A Message to the New Believer:

Congratulations &

Welcome to the Family of God

If today you received Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, this is an exciting day! All of Heaven is rejoicing over you, and your name has been officially written in the Lambs Book of Life. (Luke 10:20)

 “I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” - Luke 15:10

We would like to encourage you to write this date down somewhere important to you. Many people like to write the date of their salvation on the inside cover of their Bible. I can’t stress enough how important this is to do. Not only does it help you remember the day you became a Child of God, but it is a marker of your New Birth, like a birth certificate, which is a legal proof of your existence.

This date or marker is important because, as we have discovered in this article, there actually is a devil. Since he is a spirit, he has an ability to speak to our minds by way of deceptive thoughts. I can almost guarantee that there will come a time when a suggestive thought will come to your mind that will cause you to question whether you are really saved or not. This is where that date recorded or marker or New Birth certificate becomes important. You can simply go back to your Bible or wherever you wrote it down, and remind yourself, or say to the devil...”Nope, you’re wrong! This date is the day I received Jesus as my Lord and Savior, the day of my New Birth, the day I became a Child of God, the day I was forgiven and saved, the day my name was written in the Lamb’s book of life...end of discussion!”

Finally, we would love to know that you have joined the family of God. We are so excited for you and we want to keep you in our prayers. Email us at info@EileenJacobs.org to let us know!