FEELING DISCOURAGED AND UNAPPRECIATED?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
“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.”
(2 Thessalonians 2:16-17)

MEDITATION:
Encouragement is one of the best gifts we can give to someone. Think
about your own life and the times when you felt you could have either
succeeded with a monumental task, or overcame a challenge, if only
someone would have given you some encouragement. Our mountains
can often seem much smaller whenever others are encouraging us.

As a manager for many years, I could see the successful results of my
staff members whenever they were encouraged. When I completed a
review for someone in my first year as a manager, I took the review
home with me and pretended it was a review of me from my manager.
After I finished reading over it, I thought,
    “I wouldn’t feel very good about myself, or my
      efforts if this was the review my manager gave me”

I discovered that in every assessment category, I was focusing on
the things that needed improvement, but failing to highlight their
successes. As a result, I created a new review that pointed out the
good things my staff member had accomplished and a couple of
areas where he could improve (I also included suggestions for how
to improve).

I was amazed at how well our review meeting went, and how well
my suggestions for improvement were received. As you can imagine,
this became my approach for every review for the rest of my career.
Most people really want to do a good job, to be appreciated, and to
receive encouragement that will inspire them to reach a little higher.

What about those who are serving the Lord? From where do they
receive their encouragement? Generally speaking, most everyone
appreciates the efforts of those serving the Lord, but do they tell
them they do?

Initially they might tell them, but as time passes, they can be taken
for granted and expected to do the things they are doing for the Lord.
When that happens, both the server and the encourager miss out on
realizing and enjoying the positive impact encouragement can have
on the Lord’s work.

The Lord ‘called’ me in the 1980’s to serve Him in one area, and added
another area of service in 2013. I discovered the value of encouragement
as I attempted to answer His ‘call’. Not long after I started serving the
Lord, it felt as if Satan started increasing his efforts to discourage, But
the good news is, his efforts were offset by the prayers and encouragement
from other believers.

There were three things I didn’t feel comfortable about when the Lord
called me to serve as a Sunday School teacher:
    reading; preparing the lessons; presenting the lessons.
I believe the Lord calls us to serve in areas where we feel inadequate so
we will know that we need to be totally dependent on Him, if we expect
to serve Him sincerely and effectively.

When I first began, I learned quickly how much I needed the Lord’s
help and encouragement. He not only provided me with the content,
but He was also encouraging me as I presented what He had given.
There were many times when He would give me thoughts during the
presentations that were not in my notes.

I might have been able to ‘sling’ something together on my own and
without His help and guidance, but it wouldn’t have been what He
wanted to share with us, and I would have most likely been focused
on receiving the credit, rather than pointing all praise to Him, where
it belongs.

I could ‘feel’ the presence of the Lord’s encouragement, but I could
also ‘see’ how He was encouraging me through others (cards, words
of appreciation, etc.). If the Lord calls you to be an encourager, it is
a valuable spiritual gift that should be cherished and used often.

I have seen other teachers (and preachers) get so discouraged that
they eventually stopped serving the Lord. I’m not sure any of us
realize the magnitude of how our encouragement can contribute
to the positive impact of God’s work.

When God inspires us to encourage another believer, we need to
follow through immediately and realize this is an area where He
has called us to serve. We need to also pray for those who serve.
Prayer is the ‘silent’ encouragement that can inspire others to
keep serving. When we pray, we know that God can encourage
others in ways we can’t.

As we see in the scriptures for this devotional from the Lord,
those who serve with a desire to point others to the Lord, will
receive encouragement from our Lord Jesus Christ and God
our Father! We can enjoy participating in the Lord’s ministry
when we choose to encourage and pray for those serving Him.

Where do we receive love?
    From our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father!
Where do we receive grace?
    From our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father!
Where do we receive constant and inspiring encouragement?
    From our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father!
Where can we find good hope?
    From our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father!
Where do we receive strength to continue our work for the Lord?
    From our Lord Jesus Christ and God our Father!

How refreshing is that? God and Jesus give us EVERYTHING we
need for using our spiritual gifts to serve them! God the Father,
and God the Son are also there for us in times of sorrow.
    When Harry Lauder, the great Scottish comedian,
    received word that his son had been killed in France,
    he said,
        “In a time like this, there are three courses open to man:
          He may give way to despair and become bitter. He may
          endeavor to drown his sorrow in drink, or in a life of
          wickedness. Or he may turn to God.”

We should never forget that God gives us this assurance of His love.
    “Cast all your care on me, for I care for you”
    (1 Peter 5:7)

ACTION:
How often do you encourage others? This is a gift that anyone can
freely give because it doesn’t affect our bank accounts.

Pastors, missionaries, teachers, and others have made a commitment
to serve the Lord, and Satan is poised to attack and discourage them
probably more than other believers. Why? Because he knows they are
in a position to point others to Jesus.

One of Satan’s greatest weapons is – discouragement. If he
can discourage those serving the Lord, then he can impact
the quality of their efforts and possibly cause them to give up.

Even though they may seem upbeat on the surface, there are many
pastors and missionaries who struggle with discouragement and
depression. Make a conscious decision today to encourage them,
from time to time. When you do, you will feel better about yourself
because you will know that you are contributing to their efforts.

If you are feeling discouraged yourself, remember that our Lord
Jesus Christ and God our Father are your sources of love, grace,
mercy, encouragement, hope, and strength. Armed with these gifts,
you have been given the ability to do good deeds, and to say kind
and encouraging words to others. Don’t miss out on these golden
opportunities the Lord has given you.

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your promises to encourage
me when I worship and serve You. Thank You for helping me
to realize that I can contribute to Your ministry by encouraging
those who have committed their lives to pointing others to Jesus.
When I am discouraged, remind me of Your presence and how
I can be encouraged when I encourage others. Create in me a
desire to snuggle up to You in all that I do. Forgive me for the
times I fail You. Show me where You have called me to serve,
and teach me the value of encouraging others You have called.
I praise Your name, celebrate Your goodness, and thank You for
Your presence in my life. Strengthen me to overcome the areas
of disobedience that You know I struggle with. Help me to be
honest and stop trying to justify my actions (or inactions). May
I never forget how Your grace will console me and encourage
me, and how Your arms will support me.”

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