As
the SE Asia service team makes preparations for our upcoming journey, we have
laid out some objectives. One of those objectives is to encourage the group we
are going to visit. We discussed a few things, but I wondered how the Apostle
Paul was encouraged by others as he devoted his life to sharing God’s message
with others.
So over the next few days I’m going to be doing some digging into the encouragement realm. How to encourage those who are sharing the Gospel and how Christians can be encouraged.
There are three elements to encouragement. First, is the idea to inspire with hope, courage, or confidence; to hearten. Second is to give support to; to foster. And third is to stimulate; to spur.[i]
Inspiration
is a great concept to bring into encouragement. Sometimes if we don’t see the
vision, we will not be encouraged to join into a project, or desire to be part
of a team. When we are able to cast that vision, we will be able to draw others
into seeing what God sees.
What
are we to inspire with? Hope, courage, or confidence. As a Christian, there is
no greater hope than to know one day I will see Jesus face to face. That hope
gives me the courage and confidence to do what I am called to. Whether it’s
writing a daily blog, going on a service trip, witnessing to a stranger,
leading a women’s Bible study, or reading a Bible story to my grandchildren.
The hope I have in Christ Jesus inspires me!
The
second element to encouragement is giving support. I believe this includes
several areas. For those in ministry, we must support them financially. The men
and women who have dedicated their lives to serving a local congregation are to
be compensated for their work. But it goes beyond that.
Providing
appreciative, emotional, moral support to a person in ministry is an
encouragement to them. Knowing that a group of people are behind them will
drive them to follow the call that God has placed upon them. Doing the opposite
is the fastest way to drive a minister from a church.
And
third, we see that encouragement has an element of stimulation. To spur on.
You’ve heard how yawns and laughter are contagious, right? Well encouragement
is contagious as well. Being motivated to do better. To be better. To serve
better. It will catch on.
Encouragement.
There is a lot more to this word than meets the eye. This blog post is near
completion and I haven’t even shared a Bible verse!
In
Romans 12, Paul lists the different functions of the body of Christ. This is
what he says. “We have different gifts,
according to the grace given us, if a man’s gift is prophesying, let him use it
in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching,
let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing
to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him
govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.” (Romans
12:6-8 – NIV)
While
I believe there are those who are truly gifted in the encouragement area, I
believe each of us must be an encourager. There are so many other verses that
say, “encourage one another.” And we’ll be discussing those over the next few
days.
Take
some time today to see how you are an encourager. To whom are you an
encourager? When was the last time you were an encourager to your minister? Or
to a missionary? Or to a co-worker?
Are
you lacking in this area? If so, pray that God will open your heart to ways to
add this wonderful gift into your life.
I
must admit, I haven’t done as well with this as I should. I’m thankful for the
eye-opening experience of going on a service trip to find these areas of my
life that are lacking. I pray that the desire to be an encourager will pierce
your heart as it has mine.
The
SE Asia service team is training and preparing to go on this trip. We are now
just 36 days from leaving. I have been encouraged by so many already and am so
thankful for them. If you have the desire to be an encourager to me, please let
me know.
I’d
love to have you join my prayer partner team. You will receive emails from me
before I leave sharing prayer requests and praises. And while I am gone, a
lovely lady will be sending daily prayer requests by email, detailing what we
will be doing on that day and how you can encourage us through prayer.
I’d
love to have you join my financial partner team. I’ve been so blessed already.
The costs are nearly covered. However, it still isn’t enough. If God is placing
this on your heart, please feel free to contact me through this blog and I’ll
get the information to you as to how you can help. Or you can go to http://preachitclearly.blogspot.com/2012/07/make-difference-in-southeast-asia.html for more information.
Encouragement.
One word filled with so much meaning. Let’s be encouragers today. To whomever
your path crosses. Don’t miss an opportunity to say a good, kind word. To do a
kind deed. To be faithful to God’s mission. Through encouragement, you will be
encouraged.
Grace
and peace be yours in abundance,
Donna
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