Faith along the way

I am thankful for the people in my life who give me encouragement, for those whose love and care and concern for me is evident, for the godly counsel they give, for their prayer support. I am thankful for the mentorship given me by those people in my life, past and present. I am blessed beyond measure with precious people in my life.

There are many examples of encouraging people in the Bible. I love the writings of Paul, whose letters to the churches encouraged believers in his day, and still encourage believers today. Barnabas is another encourager in the Bible. His name means ‘son of encouragement’. You can read about him in the book of Acts and in some of Paul’s writings. The Bible, Old Testament and New Testament, is filled with people who encouraged and served one another. Take a walk through Scripture sometime by looking up references regarding the topic of encouragement.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 instructs us to encourage one another and build one another up. In a world that favors the “it’s all about me” mentality, this is not the norm, but then again, we who are Christians are called to be different than the world. We are called to follow the ways of the Lord. To be an encourager takes time, requires patience and longsuffering sometimes, and may even require some sort of sacrifice, such as time, for one example. However, being obedient to the Lord is always worth the effort put forth.

While I am extremely grateful for people who encourage me, I also must be an encourager to those in my life and to those God places in my path along the way. Sometimes they are there for a passing moment, other times they are there for a longer period of time. Regardless, I want to be ready for the opportunity, to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit, and to be guided and enabled by the Lord when the opportunity comes along.

I pray you have encouraging people in your own life, and I pray you also look for those opportunities to pass encouragement along. It makes a difference. It strengthens and impacts lives. It’s an opportunity to bless others along the way.

Glory to our great God and His blessings to you,

Jackie