Be an Encourager!

      We were with a great friend this last week and she revealed her New Year’s resolution.  She said, “I am determined to leave everyone I meet this year more positive and encouraged as a result of our meeting.”  Each of us needs to be encouraged at times and there are many ways of giving and receiving.  First, one may be encouraged to push on to the finish line or encouraged by comments of praise.  It may be an expression of confidence in the individual in a pursuit for excellence or a compliment for a job well done.  John Maxwell stated, “Remember, man does not live on bread alone; sometimes he needs a little buttering up.”

      There are some important aspects to remember about being or becoming an encourager.  We should seek other encouragers for friendships, build a support team of people who are honest and firmly established, create and hold on to the memories of past encouragements, and finally, create an atmosphere of encouragement to everyone you meet.  Positive attitude are contagious and people love to be around those who live on the positive side of life.

      Each of us is capable of being an encourager.  It may be just as simple as a smile, a note of appreciation, a telephone call to say thanks or some other special act of kindness.  Just think how much better this would be if we had a lot more encouragement and a lot less criticism of others.  “I believe that any man's life will be filled with constant and unexpected encouragement, if he makes up his mind to do his level best each day, and as nearly as possible reaching the high water mark of pure and useful living."–Booker T. Washington.  Encouragers seem know what to say, how to say it, and the right time, to match the magnitude of the situation.   We were created with special abilities and we must represent the One who created us for a purpose. 

      I had a friend years ago and each time I asked how he was doing, his answer was, “I’m not the least bit dis-encouraged.”  I cannot find that word in the dictionary to make the red, wiggly line go away but it was a correct word for him because it came from the depths of his heart!

      If you meet someone this week that has nothing left but hope, remember, “What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly." 

        Have you encouraged anyone today?  2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 “May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.”  NIV