I had the privilege of doing some teaching on Monday night. It was fabulous! I felt alive and the teaching all just flowed and came together even though it was not something I had spent much time on - in fact, I only decided on the topic half an hour before the meeting. And what I taught on spoke to me so much. It's true, you can best teach what you have to live through!
The
gift of encouragement
One of the gifts of the Spirit that is most
ignored is one that is accessible to all believers, of every age. In fact, this
is one of the most important gifts that God gives, and He gives it to everyone.
We just need to use it.
This gift has changed history, given men
and women and children great courage, helps people reach dreams (or have
dreams), gives hope and brings life. It’s a no-fail present in a modern day of
expensive tough-to-choose gifts for special occasions, because it is truly one
of the few gifts that just keeps on giving. And the more you give this gift
away, the more you personally receive.
WHAT
IS ENCOURAGEMENT?
The dictionary defines encouragement as:
1. the action
of giving someone support, confidence, or hope.
"thank
you for all your support and encouragement"
|
synonyms:
|
heartening, cheering, cheering
up, buoying up, pepping up, uplifting, inspiration, rallying, motivation, incitement, stimulation,
animation, invigoration, invigorating, emboldening, fortification; More
|
|
antonyms:
|
discouragement, dissuasion, hindering
|
2. persuasion to do or to continue something.
"incentives
and encouragement to play sports"
3. the act
of trying to stimulate the development of an activity, state, or belief.
"the
encouragement of foreign investment"
Just from this definition, we can learn
several things about encouragement:
1.
It is an action or “doing word”
which means it’s not passive
2.
It is a gift because it “gives
someone support, confidence or hope”
3.
It can include persuasion –
sometimes we need to reiterate the encouragement to do something so that our
words go in and the recipient can take action.
4.
It stimulates development of
different things: sometimes activity, sometimes belief, sometimes a change of attitude
or state.
5.
Encouragement is stimulating –
not only for the person receiving it, but also the person giving it.
WHAT
DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT ENCOURAGEMENT IN OUR TIME?
In a country that is currently unsettled
and where many are anxious, we all need support, confidence and hope. What does
the Bible say about encouragement?
Proverbs 12:25
25 Anxious
fear brings depression, but a
life-giving word of encouragement can do wonders to restore joy to the heart.
This is what I find:
·
Encouragement can be
life-giving.
·
It restores joy.
·
It touches the heart, the
deepest part of who we are.
·
Encouragement bypasses the head
and hits the guarded out-of-reach places.
HOW
CAN I APPLY ENCOURAGEMENT PRACTICALLY IN MY LIFE?
I’m a parent and encouragement is a key God
has given me recently. I’m not sure why I have not used it before and more
strategically! For those who are struggling to parent difficult children – and all
children have their difficult moments when parenting is NOT fun - here’s what encouragement
can do for your child (and for you).
2 Corinthians 2:7
7 Instead
of more punishment, what he needs most
is your encouragement through your gracious display of forgiveness.
There are days I would rather punish the
icky behaviour, but this verse turns my anger around. This verse brings all
those books I’ve read about connecting with my child’s heart into a grounded
place. And it gives me practical advice on how to deal with my children. Parenting
is not about picking up the rod of correction. It’s about looking at what my
child needs most. Encouragement and forgiveness.
WHO
CAN USE THIS GIFT?
Do you need to be a leader, a specially
gifted person, in a position of influence or “set apart” to use this gift. No,
not at all. And it’s not geographically tied to one location or people group. Paul
is a great example. Yes, he was influential in the church in Jerusalem, in
Turkey, Ephesus and Asia, but when he left Ephesus he travelled through Macedonia
meeting new people groups and telling them about Jesus. He was an unknown
traveller, yet look what the Bible says of him…
Acts 20:2
2 At every
place he passed through, he brought
words of great comfort and encouragement to the believers. Then he went on
to Greece
It wasn’t all about Paul’s healing ministry,
his marvellous preaching or his great acts of service and courage. Paul was
recognised for being someone who brought words of great comfort and
encouragement. Wherever he went.
Paul writes to Philemon, a rich slave owner
who lived in Colossae, and says this:
Philemon 1:7
7 Your
love has impacted me and brings
me great joy and encouragement, for the hearts of the believers have been
greatly refreshed through you, dear brother.
Philemon was an encourager. In fact, Paul
says that he has heard (while in prison) of Philemon’s great love for the
believers and his faith. Philemon is a man who refreshes the hearts of many
believers (Phil 1:7).
THE
FRUIT OF ENCOURAGEMENT
Every gift has fruit. Jesus says you can know
a tree by its fruit. In the same way, we can see the value of gifts by the impact
they have.
Scripture is one gift we have been given. The
Scriptures were put together to instruct us how to live, and this verse is so
important – it shows us the fruits of encouragement.
Romans 15:4
4 Whatever
was written beforehand is meant to instruct us in how to live. The Scriptures
impart to us encouragement and inspiration so
that we can live in hope and endure all things.
The first fruit is to be able to live in
hope. The second is to endure all things.
Surely every person on this earth needs to be
able to live in hope and to endure all things?
Two other fruits of encouragement are help
and grace.
Acts 18:27
27 Then
Apollos, with the encouragement of
the believers, went to the province of Achaia. He took a letter of
recommendation from the brothers of Ephesus so his ministry would be welcomed
in the region. He was a tremendous help
to the believers and caused them to increase in grace.
Apollos – because someone used their gift
of encouragement - travelled to Achaia, a trip not for the faint-hearted. He
travelled by road, on foot, faced robbery, hardship, dust, aching legs, bad
beds, rude fellow travellers, possibly seasickness. All because he was
encouraged to go. And when he got to Achaia, he brought help to the believers.
We are not told what help he brought, but we do know that his help caused them
to increase in grace. All because someone gave Apollos a word of encouragement!
WHERE
IS ENCOURAGEMENT FOUND?
We find encouragement from our fellow
Christians.
Acts 13:15
15 After
the reading from the scrolls of the books of Moses and the prophets, the leader
of the meeting sent Paul and Barnabas a message, saying, “Brothers, do you
have a word of encouragement to
share with us? If so, please feel free to give it.”
We find encouragement in our relationship with the Anointed One.
Philippians 2:1
2 Look at how much encouragement you’ve
found in your relationship with the Anointed One! You are filled to
overflowing with his comforting love. You have experienced a deepening
friendship with the Holy Spirit and have felt his tender affection and mercy.
As we spend time getting to know our God, we:
·
are filled with his comforting
love
·
experience a deepening friendship
with the Holy Spirit
·
feel his tender affection and
mercy.
We are encouraged.
ARE
WE COMMISSIONED TO USE THE GIFT OF ENCOURAGEMENT?
Yes, we are. Paul sent Tychicus with a commission.
Colossians 4:7
7–8 Tychicus
will tell you about what is happening with me. I have sent him to you so that he could find out how you are doing
in your journey of faith, and bring
comfort and encouragement to your hearts. For he is a beloved brother in
Christ, a faithful servant of the gospel and my ministry partner in our Master
Yahweh’s work.
His commission was to:
·
tell the believers about Paul
·
find out how they were doing in
their journey of faith (notice, faith is a journey, not a once-off stop)
·
bring comfort and encouragement
to hearts
Not only was Tychicus commissioned to bring
encouragement, Paul writes:
Romans 12:8
8 If you have the grace-gift of
encouragement, then use it often to encourage others. If you have the
grace-gift of giving to meet the needs of others, then may you prosper in your
generosity without any fanfare. If you have the gift of leadership, be
passionate about your leadership. And if you have the gift of showing
compassion, then flourish in your cheerful display of compassion.
This is a direct command. Use the
grace-gift of encouragement OFTEN.
ENCOURAGEMENT
IS POWERFUL
We see Paul write to Timothy:
1 Timothy 1:18
18–19 So
Timothy, my son, I am entrusting you with this responsibility, in keeping with
the very first prophecies that were spoken over your life, and are now in the
process of fulfillment in this great work of ministry, in keeping with the
prophecies spoken over you. With this
encouragement use your prophecies as weapons as you wage
spiritual warfare by faith and with a clean conscience.
Paul entrusted Timothy to take over
leadership of the church, in keeping with the prophecies first spoken over Timothy’s
life. Then Paul encourages him, and says “with this encouragement use your
prophecies as weapons”. Both the encouragement and the prophecies were weapons.
Not just the prophecies, not just the
encouragement. Both together.
Let’s go back to the dictionary definition:
Encouragement
is the action of giving someone support, confidence, or hope.
Encouragement
is persuasion to do or to continue to do
something.
Encouragement
is the act of trying to stimulate development
of an activity, state or belief.
Some other
words you can use for “encouragement” are heartening, cheering, cheering
up, buoying up, pepping up, uplifting, inspiration, rallying, motivation, incitement, stimulation,
animation, invigoration, invigorating, emboldening, fortification
Words you can
use that are opposite to encouragement are to dissuade, to hinder or to
discourage (take courage out of).
HOW DO WE USE ENCOURAGEMENT AS OUR WEAPON
1.
Use your grace-gift to
encourage others.
2.
Listen to the encouragement
that you are given and think about those words.
3.
Fill your heart with the Scriptures
so that you develop a deeper intimate relationship with God – His word is
living and active, so if you have read it and keep reading it, it is alive in
you.
4.
Know that God is the one who gives
(places into you) the desires of your heart. He also fulfils them. Your destiny
is linked to the place and work and actions that make you feel most fulfilled
and alive. Those desires are your calling and destiny.
5.
Don’t give up! Encourage yourself and encourage others.
Sometimes encouragement feels a lot like persuasion!
6.
Know that giving away encouragement
– whether it’s a heartfelt “well done”, a pat on the back, a scripture, a
testimony of goodness, leads to a harvest.
Encourage. To put courage into. To support,
give confidence to. To bring hope.
Proverbs 12:25 says a life-giving word of encouragement can do wonders to restore joy to
the heart.
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