October 16th, 2023 Monday Motivator
Good morning, my Friend,
I hope you had the chance to savor the fall weather despite your busy weekend schedule and prior commitments.
As I’ve been sharing with you, there’s a principle I believe in that’s aimed at fostering connections and building relationships, something particularly crucial in these times of post-pandemic isolation.
The enemy would love nothing more than for us to feel isolated and to distort our passions. That’s why today, I want to discuss “E” for encourage.
Encouragement, I believe, is one of the keys to the vitality of life. We all crave encouragement, whether it’s from our parents, friends, or bosses. Passion may be what motivates us to rise in the morning and persevere when we feel like giving up, but encouragement provides the comfort and boost we need because it reassures us that we’re not alone.
In a world where passions can be twisted or dimmed, it’s essential that we encourage those with Godly passions to continue the good fight of faith, to uplift them, build them up, and cheer them on. That’s my life motto, my goal, and my calling whenever I interact with people, as I know many find themselves in situations where courage wanes.
Throughout the Bible, we see God and the disciples encouraging the church, new believers, and prophets in the Old Testament. The number of times we read God saying, “Do not be afraid, but be courageous, for I am with you,” is astonishing.
Just as it was then, we now need that same encouragement from our fellow believers. We need to understand that we are not alone, that God is with us, and that we can face the challenges with courage and keep our passion ablaze for God’s will.
So, how can you uplift someone today? How can you build them up? How can you cheer them on? It might be through a kind word, getting down in the trenches with them, or standing by their side, cheering them on until they cross the finish line.
One of the most beautiful aspects of sports is having a team or teammate. When a game is close or tough, we come together and encourage each other. Just by hearing a teammate say, “You’ve got this,” we find the strength to persevere. Whether we win or lose, we have a coach encouraging us afterwards, about the great game we played.
In the same way, we have a coach, our God, encouraging and coaching us through this race in life until the day we meet face to face, and we are each other’s teammates! Let’s finish the race!
Romans 12:6,8
v.6 “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us”… v.8 “if it is to encourage, then give encouragement”
Hebrews 10:25
And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
1 Thessalonians 5:14
And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.
