Do not be discouraged. Fix your eyes upon Me, and see if I do not pour forth faith that moves mountains.
To not be discouraged, we will have to look away from all that surrounds us that is so discouraging in this world, and continually and habitually (which is the tense of that verb in Hebrews 12:2) look to Him. As we focus on Him: His truth, omnipotency, faithfulness, lovingkindness, and His promises in His Word, and as we are reminded of just how big and able He truly is, He will pour forth faith, even in the places where we are tempted to be discouraged and to fear.
He is THE Almighty. You may lay your burden down at His feet to carry for you and to accomplish what concerns you this very day, and in the days to come. He is ABLE to make you to walk on your high places and to make you to walk in confidence in what He is able to do and confidence in your security in His loving care for your plight. He is intimately acquainted with all of your ways and all of your cares and concerns.
Do not fear, even 'though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea' (Psalm 46:1). In other words no matter what, you need not fear, for He is with you. He holds you, cares for you, and is your great support. You are not, and never will be, forsaken. He is able, even in the midst of 'impossibilities'.
Do not be overcome by any bad report to the point of despondency or paralyzing fear. Like Abraham, who without becoming weak in faith contemplated the true situation (that his body was as good as dead) "yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform" (Rom 4:17-22), hear the report, consider the truth of the message/the reality, but be fully assured that God can and will do what He has said He will do. Take courage; take as He gives.
And like Nehemiah at the report of ovewhelming, discouraging news, bring it before God in prayer and obey what He tells you to do. Pray and see how He may even use you. Nehemiah had no place to be of any help to the people of Jerusalem, or to be any answer to his own prayer, yet God used him as part of the solution.
Nehemiah is a 'power of one' example. He didn't just hear the bad report about the state of his people, that they were in great distress and reproach and unprotected because the walls of Jerusalem were down, and lament saying, 'It's all over and hopeless." Instead, even though he was in NO position to do anything about it (he was probably approximately a two months journey away from the problem, 600 miles away serving as cupbearer to Artazerxes), he prayed with a broken heart over the state of the people. In answer to those prayers, he eventually found himself orchestrating and overseeing the rebuilding of the broken down walls.
But that rebuilding began with a broken heart and prayer and the power of ONE heart on fire and dismayed at the conditions that God's chosen people were living in, leaving themselves is disarray and unprotected.
If your heart is currently broken over discouraging news, take the encouragement of 'the power of one' message of Nehemiah's life, who built up a team and allowed God to accomplish the impossible through them 'suddenly'. (The walls had been down 141 years, and Nehemiah and the people completed the walls in 52 days after starting the work.)
"...for The LORD is not restrained to save by many or few." 1 Samuel 14:6
Don't settle for the 'truth' of the bad report. But in prayer, seek for His truth, His direction, and watch Him use even you to 'produce change'- to bring about the change that you are tempted to even give up hope for.
Do not be discouraged. Look to Him and see if He does not pour forth mountain moving faith.
