While on a ministry trip to Ohio, I spent three nights in a hotel. My schedule made it necessary to arise and shine early each morning! I would go down to the breakfast room at 5:30 to get my anointed cup of coffee and read over my message. There were two women who stocked the breakfast area, and they told me their day started at 4:30. As I watched hotel guests eating breakfast, very little thought seemed to be given to these women. It was not a “limelight” job.
God spoke to me to bless those two women daily with words of thanksgiving and praise, and I did. The last morning, I felt God leading me to bring them a gift of thanksgiving. As I placed it in their hands, I thanked them for a job well done. I thanked them that I had fresh coffee so early in the morning. They begin to grin, and you could almost see their shoulders lift. I could see them in the back room, and as we say in the south, “they were tickled pink!” I honestly think I was more blessed than they were.
We often think of great ministries or ministers as those who stand up front, those in the limelight. I have certainly known great men and women of God who have gifts requiring them to stand in the limelight. But, there is a ministry that is so needed in life today, and it’s a great ministry that all of us can do. Don’t even take a spiritual gift test to see if you have it! It is the ministry of EN-couragement!
Everyone, from babes to senior citizens, needs EN-couragement. To EN-courage is to put courage into someone. To DIS-courage is to take courage out of them. You don’t have to go to seminary to have a great ministry! Be an EN-courager! Today speak a kind word; tell someone you appreciate them; say thank you to your boss; tell that nurse how much you appreciate her care; tell a child how glad you are God made them; post on someone’s Facebook complimenting them. If you will look around today, you will have many opportunities to have a great ministry – the ministry of EN-couragement.
Show the love of God by being an EN-courager. Make a point of putting courage into your spouse, your children, your friends, your pastor, your mentor, the clerk checking you out at the grocery store, the teller at the bank, the single parent and countless others. Be a blessing today through EN-couragement. Go out of your way to do it, and one wonderful thing that happens, is that in blessing others you will be blessed yourself.
“The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life …” Proverbs 10:11
I Love this, and for so many years I thought ‘oh I am only a smile for someone. or I keep them in my prayers… or I send a note (in fact I have one going out to Jayce this week), or bake a bread…’. FOR YEARS I’d ask, ‘God am I doing enough to please you and touch those that need a kind word….’ Then one night praying the Lord spoke to my heart, these things are important to love others so they will see HIM through me…’ then the Holy Spirit will take it from there…. one day. ALSO for years the devil would say, ‘this is not God’s work, you are not saved and doing His work’… I was told one time if I wasn’t saved and doing His work, in small ways, the devil wouldn’t bug me so much… but the devil always wants to throw doubt in our minds. So thank you Barbara for this message… and now that you read it would you delete it….. I am not wanting people to think I am patting myself on my back, or any haughty anything….. I am just sharing with you.
Nancy Wampler
Encouragement is a great ministry. Much needed. Encourage on, sister!