How just a little encouragement can make a big difference

"Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another" (Hebrews 10:24-25a).

The world can be a very discouraging place. We can be surrounded  by toxic, draining, demanding people at work or even at home. We can often feel like we don't measure up.

This is why we need to be involved in life-giving small groups of Christ-followers. 

None of us can make it alone. We weren't meant to. We need to belong to a small group of believers to help keep us get and stay fit for God.

In the first years of the Christian faith, church buildings didn’t exist. Church meetings were held in homes. That’s why we should be excited to participate in LifeGroups. LifeGroups get us back in touch with what the church is really meant to be.

One of the purposes of a group is to encourage each other – to help each other stay in shape spiritually.

I have a friend who had a very difficult year in 2014. There was a time in his life during the course of the year he found himself deeply discouraged. His ministry shut down. His finances were difficult. He experienced the death dream. He wondered if his life mattered.

Then, a text message came to him from a friend. As he looked back a last year, he realized that that that text message made a huge difference in his life. He thanked the sender:

"I want to thank [you] for staying in touch with us and loving us as family, and for being a constant encouragement to our family. At one of my lowest moments in 2014, you sent me a text message out of the blue, you said many wonderful things but at the end you urged me to not give up on God or myself or my calling... because [you wrote to me] the world needs you... That not only made me feel like a Super Hero (lol) for a brief moment, but it gave me a spark to begin dreaming again."

Wow. The life-giving power of encouraging words!

I wonder, "Who might need that kind of encouragement from me? And am I in deep relationships with people so that they could encourage me when I get discouraged?"

Who might need a text or a note or a card or a call or a conversation over a cup of coffee like this from you?

What are you waiting for?