Those who learn to encourage will stand out like a cool breeze on a hot summer’s day.
Dare 2 Share - “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths,
but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs,
that it may benefit those who listen.” (Ephesians 4:29)
Amaze your friends-confuse your enemies! Astound your parents-perplex your teachers! How? New magic tricks? Don’t think so. Amazing feats of physical skill? Not hardly. It’s so simple, anyone can do it- it’s called encouragement!
Why? Because we live in a culture that breathes and breeds sarcasm and cynicism. The media is like a skunk on the loose spreading skepticism and scorn. Public school hallways discipline us in damaging dialogue. The lunchrooms dish it out, and the locker rooms reek of it. I’m sure that if you thought about all the conversations you had this past week, you could easily recall being on the giving and receiving end of ‘unwholesome’ talk. One of the biggest lies in the world is the saying that ‘sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me’.
It was no different in Paul’s day. The standard form of speech in his world was often characterized by put downs and insults. Yet his point is that Christians should be different, because we are God’s people. God is love, so we must be loving- and that should show up in our speech. So let me give you an assignment this week: Keep a mental tally of every instance where you resort to unwholesome talk because you are angry or you’re trying to impress someone. As well, keep another tally of every instance where your speech was beneficial to those who heard it. The goal would be for consoling conversation to win hands down. You will probably be amazed at how little our day-to-day speech is encouragement centered.
Remember, the students that you sit with in class need encouragement. They ‘re used to being hammered with the cutting jokes and biting remarks of other teens. I’m not talking about sugarcoated speech that comes off insincere, but a few words of authentic encouragement could be a landmark in their lives. Those who learn to encourage will stand out like a cool breeze on a hot summer’s day.
It’s true that we as believers are the only Bible that some people ever read. If we want to convince our friends and family that Christianity is ‘for real’, then we must back it up with the way we speak. Shatter the norm! Break the status quo! Rock the boat! Be an encourager in a sarcastic world!
Questions:
1) Why does everyone need encouragement?
2) Since the gospel is the most encouraging message ever given, how can you ‘encourage’ someone this week?
