Encouragement – Enabling Courage!

Encouragement is one of the primary tools that is uniquely found in the Christian faith. We experience it in our time spent with God in prayer, as well as in genuine fellowship with each other. The word itself practically means “enabling courage”. Another way of saying it, is “finding strength”, “building confidence”, or “embracing hope”. It’s all in the same category!

We receive encouragement in order to possess the strength for moments when we are weak and vulnerable for attack. Why? Because we need all we can get to overcome the obstacles we face in this world! Obstacles and temptations that are designed to prey on our weaknesses and pry us away from the flock that is under the direction of the Shepherd (Jesus) who cares for us and leads us in this life!

I used this “flock” example last night at our refresh Bible study:

When we keep to the flock (in the company and encouragement of our church family) and follow the lead of the Shepherd, we are less likely to go astray where the enemy is ready to pounce and destroy us!

1 Peter 5:8 says:

“Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”

The devil isn’t stuck in hell stabbing poor souls with a pitchfork. He’s roaming this earth like a beastly predator looking for sheep going out on their own due to hurt and disappointment… feelings egged on through his weapon of discouragement, which can eventually transform us from a mere weakened animal to that day’s lunch!

So, how do we prevent this from happening? The flock needs to encourage each other in times of struggle. “Strength in numbers” applies here because it works! You see, you don’t normally find a wolf picking off sheep while the Shepherd has them corralled together!

Let’s read what Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 5:11…

“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”

Here at this point in time, the early church was facing all kinds of persecution. Persecution unlike any that we know of in our western culture today! Encouragement was certainly needed to balance it all out!

The power of encouragement is this: to strengthen us… mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually. Why did I include “physically”? Because all of these conditions are connected. If we are down in any of these areas, it can affect the others (medical studies have shown this to be true). Discouragement is a powerful weapon used against us and if done effectively, it can kill us just as well as encouragement can give us life!

We wonder why our fellow brothers and sisters of the faith “backslide” (go astray from the flock and the Shepherd) and drown their sorrows with vices (drugs, alcohol, etc.), bad relationships, and weekend escapes. They’re not finding enough encouragement!

Instead, they started listening to the lies of the enemy, believing it’s safe to go their own way to finding “happiness”, when in reality he’s just setting a trap for them! This happens every day and we just chalk it up as another casualty in the faith.

However, we have a great responsibility to one another: to encourage… because we know someone else is always going to be around to discourage!

How about you? Are you feeling down? Lost? Disappointed with your life? BE ENCOURAGED because God cares for you! You are His child! His precious creation! And guess what? You have a purpose! A plan for your life! A future that involved all kinds of good stuff you never dreamed possible!

Jeremiah 29:11 tells us this:

“For I know the plans I have for you, says the Lord. They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

Ignore the lying whispers of the enemy who is telling you otherwise! He’s only trying to lure you away so he can destroy you!

Listen to the Shepherd’s directions! He knows what’s best for us! (because He loves us!)