We all need encouragement throughout our life here on earth. Sometimes it could be the last link in the chain that pulls us over the top of the mountain of trial. I usually get the encouragement I need from my family and friends. I have had an enormous amount of encouragement from the readers of my blog and for that I am very grateful. Think back to a time that you didn't think you could keep going and someone said," You can do it. I am praying for you". Do you remember the strength those words gave you at the time?
We all like and need encouragement, but how many people in a week do we encourage? We agree that there are many people in our communities today that are suffering. Do they ever receive encouragement? Encouragement can be an act of prevention. We all know at least one person that has taken the wrong path in their life that maybe has led to drug addiction, marital problems or have just given up. What if before they chose the wrong path you were there to encourage them and (do something completely out of the box in today's culture) had prayer with them ?
I would not be afraid to say that there are some people that go week after week with no one ever encouraging them and I dare say that some may even go a lifetime without anyone ever mentioning their name in a prayer. How sad. Don't you think it would make a difference? I thought so. Who are you then encouraging today?
We must know what we are encouraging them to do. I am going to tell you a true story about one time my mistake of giving encouragement to the wrong action.
One time, when I was child, on a cold and rainy Sunday afternoon, my brother Randy and I decided to go to the barn and play. We usually would build tunnels through the bales of hay. We had played for about an hour and we heard our beagle hound "Poochy" starting to bark. Looking for something else to do we got down out of the loft to see what he had. We found Poochy digging and barking. He was digging a hole and was going back and forth. So we started yelling,"Get it Poochy, Get it." That's all the encouragement Poochy needed. He began to dig as if his life depended on it.(Remember this is on a Sunday afternoon and we our going to have to get ready to go to church in a few minutes) Poochy started barking frantically. We were all excited, yelling and screaming, encouraging our little dog on, wondering what he was after. Then, all of the sudden we heard a growl and Poochy started backing out of the hole pulling something out with him.
Out of the hole he came dragging a big, mad skunk. When the skunk got his footing he let Poochy have it first and then Randy and I got a big spraying. Smelling a skunk from a distance is bad enough, but point blank range with a full dose is awful. Not only can you smell it, you can taste it. The worse part was telling mama. There is nothing worse than being naked in your own backyard on a rainy , cold Sunday afternoon, smelling like a skunk, with your mama mad at you. The moral of this story is always check out what you are giving them encouragement to do.
Our silence can sometimes be an encouragement to our children or someone else to continue in a wrong activity. Take for an example if you walk through the den and your teenager is watching a movie with their friends. Bad language comes from the TV getting your attention. You turn around and look and see a sexual scene happening in the movie. Your children know you heard the language and saw the graphic sexual material. Now there is no margin for error in this scenario. If you say nothing, I guarantee , your teenagers will think it is ok for them to continue to watch that filth. So will their friends. Their moral balance is depending on you. Be very careful of your silence. You do not want to make the wrong choice.
Look at the immorality in our country today that was encouraged by our silence. You can list them. I will name one, same sex marriage.
Give someone encouragement today. Be sure what you are encouraging them to do and let us make it a practice never again to encourage wrong doing by our silence.
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Thanks,
Rick Hepler
