Several years ago,
there was a slogan going around, you may have seen it on a bumper sticker or on
a road sign that said:
“Have you hugged your child today?”
I loved that
slogan! It was a great reminder to those
of us with children, that a hug is a great way to show that we love them and
want to encourage them.
But, it is not only
children that need to know they are loved and need to be encouraged. Everyone walking on the face of this earth
needs to know that. Everyone needs to
have people in their life that will show them they care, including us as well
as our Brothers and Sisters in Christ.
I don’t know about
you, but I struggle to be encouraging at times.
Life circumstances go up and down and I find myself living on my
emotions instead of obedience to God’s Word.
I know that my enemy, the devil, is prowling around like a roaring lion
looking to destroy me. (I Peter
5:8) He wants you too!
I learned an acronym
several years ago that describes for me the times I most struggle to be
encouraging because these are the times that I find myself most under attack
from the enemy. I would like to share it
with you to encourage you when you are struggling and under attack. The acronym is: HALT
We need to HALT when we are feeling:
Hungry
Angry
Lonely
Tired
because it is at these
times that we are most vulnerable to the enemy’s attacks. When we are feeling any of these feelings, we
need to just walk away. Walk away from
whatever it is that is pressing in upon us, take a breather, go to the Father;
read the Word, let Him show us what it is that we should do, instead of acting
impulsively on our emotions and thus give the devil a foothold (“…do not give
the devil a foothold.” Ephesians 4:27.)
I would like to share
with you the following checklist of scripture God gave me to use to examine
myself and see if I am encouraging my brothers and sisters in Christ:
Am I “encouraging my brothers and sisters in Christ and
building them up?” (“Therefore encourage one another and build
each other up.” I Thessalonians 5:11)
Am I “judging my Brothers and Sisters in Christ?”
(“Why do you judge your brother?
Or why do you look down on your brother?
Each of us will give an account of himself to God.” Romans 14:10, 12)
Am I praying for my Brothers and Sisters in Christ? (“…be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.”)
Am I “being an imitator of God and treating my Brothers and
Sisters in Christ with kindness, compassion and forgiveness?” (“Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each
other, just as in Christ, God forgave you.
Be imitators of God.” Ephesians
4:32-5:1)
Am I “loving my
Brothers and Sisters in Christ? (“Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one
another. By this all men will know that
you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
John 13:34-35)
As we encourage, pray
for and love our brothers and sisters in Christ, others will see that we are
Jesus’ disciples and we will be unified, thus fulfilling Ephesians 4:2-3 which
says, “Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in
love. Make every effort to keep the
unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
We are a family, the family of God, and as we live out this scripture as
a family, we will truly be a living testimony for our Lord and Savior Jesus
Christ to the unsaved people in our lives.
Encouraging a
Brother or Sister in Christ could help them walk away from a temptation, renew
their passion for the Lord, cause them to share what Christ has done in their
life with unbelievers or even read their Bible more. Reading their Bible will show them the
character of God which will bring even more encouragement into their life and
help them to be an encourager themselves.
And then, when we encourage a Brother or Sister in Christ…..we ourselves
are encouraged!
And so I ask
you:
Have you encouraged your
Brother and/or Sister in Christ Today?
“How good and pleasant it is when
brothers and sisters live together in harmony.”
Psalm 133:1
Encouragement will bring a smile to the
faces of our brothers and sisters in Christ.
I would
love to hear from you!
THERE IS NO BETTER WAY TO LIVE!
Encouraging You In Christ!
