ENCOURAGEMENT-04 (1 Thessalonians 3:6)

DOES YOUR LIFE ENCOURAGE OR DISCOURAGE OTHER BELIEVERS?

BIBLE PASSAGE:
But Timothy has just now come to us from you and has brought
good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you
always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see
us, just as we also long to see you.
(1 Thessalonians 3:6)

MEDITATION:
Paul and Silas were greatly encouraged whenever they received
a report from Timothy regarding the Christians in Thessalonica.
Timothy had positive information about the depth of their love,
and the sincerity of their faith.

Isn’t that what all Christians should want others to report about
them? No believer wants others to say,
    “Well, he or she claims to be a believer, but their
      actions and words do not support their claim”.
Followers of Christ never want to be categorized as hypocrites.

Jesus not only loved others, but He made special efforts to prove His
love, didn’t He? If we are followers of Jesus, then it is only natural
that we should want to mimic Him, by showing our love to others,
and especially our Christian brothers and sisters. Jesus gave us a
specific command (not a suggestion) to actively show our love for others.
    One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
    “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
    Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart
    and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first
    and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love
    our neighbor as yourself.’
    (Matthew 22:35-37)

With that thought in mind, we should ask ourselves,
    “When, how often, and how do I show love to other believers?”
      Note:
          Jesus showed love to others at any time, and He showed
          it to those close to Him, to those He barely knew, and to
          strangers as well.

    “Do I ever think about how I can be an encourager to others?”
      Note:
          When we know that we have been given a command from
          the Lord, then we should be sensitive to what He expects of us.

    “Do I show love for others only as a response
      to their show of love for me, or do I initiate it?”
    “Do I show love, and encourage only those close to me?”
      Note:
          Jesus didn’t have any restrictions about loving others, but
          commanded us to love others with the kind of love we have
          for ourselves (which includes having a sensitivity to the needs
          of others for love and encouragement, and a kind of 6th sense
          of knowing when they are hurting or discouraged). In order
          for us to detect when others are in need, we should have a
          ‘Jesus like’ concern for them, shouldn’t we? It means we
          need to become selfless and have a willingness to be active
          in encouraging and showing love to others.

    “Have I allowed Satan to convince me that all this love
      ‘stuff’ is for others and I’ll worship the way that ‘fits’ me?”
    “Have I been guilty of thinking that others are showing love for
      others, so they don’t really need me to show love for them as well”
      Note:
          God didn’t restrict His command to love and encourage
          others to only those He created with specific personality
          trait, He command ALL to show love and encouragement.
          These are traits of Jesus and if we are His followers, then
          they should be traits of ours as well. Jesus went out of His
          way to express His concern for others, and God commands
          us to do the same.

    “Do I feel that my plate is too full to worry about how I can have
      a positive impact on others through love and encouragement?”
      Note:
          Jesus was busy on mission to do the work given Him
          by the Father, but He was never too busy to passively
          ignore the needs of others who were hurting, and in
          need of love and encouragement.

    “Have my thoughts been restricted to my ‘vertical’ show of
      love for Jesus, and omitting my ‘horizontal’ love for others?”
      Note:
          God’s command to us was to love Him first, and
          include a love for others in addition to loving Him.
          We should think about how we love God, and how
          we show our love to Him. And next, we need to think
          about how we love others, and how we show our love
          and encouragement to them,

It is important for us to realize how much we can influence others,
either positively or negatively. Imagine that you are the one who
is hurting and need to receive love and encouragement. You are
grateful for the support you receive from those close to you, but
then you receive an unexpected show of love and encouragement
from someone else you know, but are not around very much.

How would it make you feel? Is there a possibility that you would
think that God is answering a desperate prayer of yours by showing
you His love and encouragement through someone else? That’s the
kind of impact we can have on others when we choose to be unselfish
in the same manner of Jesus.

Now imagine that you are the one God wants to use, but you have
made excuses for not allowing Him to use you. Think about the
failure you have caused in God’s effort to answer the prayer of
someone through you. What excuse will you give to the Lord on
the day of judgment? How many times have you felt God was
bringing someone to your mind because He wanted to minister
to them through you, but you brushed it aside for various reasons?

Love and encouragement are actions words that require us to ‘do
something’ as confirmation of our concern for others. Sure, it may
require us to leave our ‘comfort zone’, and for us to have an attitude
of selflessness, but just knowing that through our actions, we have
responded to God’s request (and expectations), is one of the greatest
blessings we can receive. Why wouldn’t we want to respond to Him?

In our own families, our children are influenced more by
what they see in us, than in what we say. Actions DO speak
louder than words, and if we want to ‘speak’ encouragement
and love to others, then we need to make a conscious effort
to actively ‘show’ the sincerity of our concern for them.

ACTION:
We each have choices to make about what we will do with
God’s merciful and gracious gift of salvation. We can choose
to ignore the magnitude of His gift and continue living our
life with our will in control, or we can embrace the enormity
of His grace and surrender to His will, and confirm our love
for Him through our interactions with others.

Whether we like it or not, we are observed by others and
the way we live our Christian lives can either encourage
or discourage other believers. If we claim to be a Christian
but are living in sin, we are detrimental to the Lord’s earthly
ministry and we discourage other followers of Christ.

As one example, what would a lost (or saved) person think
about someone who claims to love the Lord, but is living
in sin shacked up with another person? What message does
that communicate about living in obedience to God? Would
you be encouraged or discouraged by their actions?

We should be sensitive and remember that if a lost person
thinks of something as a sin, then even if we know it is not
a sin, we need to avoid it for the sake of their soul. Look at
what Paul said in Romans.
    It is better not to eat meat or drink wine
    or to do anything else that will cause your
    brother or sister to fall.
    (Romans 14:21)

God’s instructions are clear about what we should avoid,
and the things we should be doing in obedience to His
commands. We can rationalize and make all the excuses
we can think of, but when God wants to use us, we must
respond regardless of the time or inconvenience it causes
for us.

In years past, for us to show love and concern for others, we
would have to see them face to face, send them a card, or call
them on the phone. However in today’s world, we can also send
a text, which requires minimal effort for us, but can an amazing
impact on others who are struggling with pain, heartache, some
uncertainty, discouragement in serving the Lord, concerns for a
neighbor or family member who is making bad choices, etc.

Be honest, how much time does it take to send a text to assure
someone that you are praying for them. It takes more time to
think about the content of the text, than the time required to
send it. And, the same is true when receiving texts from others.

If we choose to ignore or not respond to their text, then we are
communicating to them that what they have sent us is not very
important to us. Sometimes just a reply of, “Thank you” is all
that is needed. How can anyone claim they are too busy to use
20-30 seconds for responding to someone’s text, or a couple of
minutes texting someone a message of love and encouragement?

Someone may have been earnestly praying, and are anxiously waiting
the Lord’s answer to their prayer for encouragement and love at this
this desperate time of need in their life. You and I could be the one
God has chosen use for ‘speaking’ to them, and we need to show the
Lord (and ourselves) that we are willing to think of others ahead of
ourselves, by responding to His call specifically for us.
    Therefore if you have any encouragement from being
    united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any
    common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and
    compassion, then make my joy complete by being
    like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit
    and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or
    vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above
    yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each
    of you to the interests of the others.
    (Philippians 2:1-4)

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your unimaginable
and loving gift of salvation to me. I pray that others
will see in me my gratitude and commitment to You.
Forgive me for any I have discouraged and create a
greater desire in me to encourage others by the way
I live my life as a follower of Your Son, Jesus. Teach
to be humble and willing to respond to what You expect
of me when You want to love and encourage someone.”

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