What the ocean washes away ...

As many of you know, I’ve been blessed to be able to travel to Australia a couple of times now.  It’s something that I have known that I would do for many years.  I had to continually press toward that goal year after year after year, literally, before it came to pass.  And, although it was a joyful experience for it to come to pass, it did not come without sorrow.  Although I never could fathom just how things would come to pass while in the very  troubled marriage I was in, never did I imagine the dream coming to pass as a divorced woman.  I totally believed God for healing in all aspects of my life and marriage.  With that said; my husband divorced me, which, ironically, allowed for my travel to the wonderful country of Australia.

While I was there, I visited a beautiful beach called Norah Head.  I was amazed at the rocks that are on the beach there.  Where the Pacific tide comes and goes on this beach, over time, it has worn away parts of the rock that has left nearly perfectly straight lines. I noticed this the first time I was there, but then really took notice last winter when I was there.  I said to my friend, Joey, “These lines nearly look man made, but they’re not.”  They have been made by the continual flow of the tide over many, many years.  I know this may sound simplistic, but, Holy Spirit was speaking to me about His Creation.  I really tried to wrap my brain around what He was speaking to me, but, I knew that this was deeper than the actual crevices in the rocks on this beach.

As I was focusing on the rocks, the lines in the rocks, and opening my heart to receive what Holy Spirit was saying to me, I could see, in my head, friends and acquaintances from my “home Starbucks” thousands of miles away.  For years, there had been quite a number of people at that store who had become friends and quite frankly like family in some aspects.  Some of us were daily customers; some weekly; and some just occasional customers.  But, because we saw each other on a regular basis, we would reach out to one another, sharing life’s ups and downs.  For many years this group of people grew in number. But then, nearly as quickly as it grew … one by one … we each have gone our separate ways.

Just as the tide of the  Pacific continues to flow over the rocks on that beach, wearing away parts of the rock, creating lines, or crevices, so the Holy Spirit flows over and through our lives, individually and as units, taking away the parts that He doesn’t want in or around us …creating crevices or voids that only He can fill.  He flows over and through us, washing away parts and pieces, using departure, betrayal, deception, divorce, death, distraction, etc … just to name a few ways of creating these voids.

He put our “Starbucks group” together as a “unit” for a time; teaching, molding, and fashioning us the way He saw fit for each of us, for a time.  But then, in His perfect timing, carried away what was not needed, piece by piece, one by one … putting each of us in different places, for different purposes, with different “units” of people, continuing to carry on the same process.

The big question is this:  Are we allowing Him to work in us and through us through this process?  Are we relying on Him to show us what we need to change in our lives? Or, are we just allowing these things to happen without sufficiently learning what God’s purpose is for all of it?  We can either learn from what He’s showing us, or we can ignore it, “sweeping it under the rug,’ so to speak.  I assure you, sweeping it under the rug is not the way to go.  When we do that we are ignoring the issues that God wants us to deal with.  Just because we ignore something doesn’t mean that issue will go away.  I assure you, it will still be there for us to deal with whenever we decide to deal with it.  I say, “Why not deal with the issue when God brings it to our conscience instead of dragging it out for weeks, months, years, or decades?”  When we do that, we’re only making it more difficult on ourselves.

God has a purpose for everything that takes place in our lives.  These “lines” or “voids” that are created are there for a reason; to strengthen and teach us through and in Him by allowing Him to fill those voids that are left behind. People won’t and cannot fill those voids.  Oh, one can try, but in the end, we will see that we truly need God. We are nothing without Him. I do my best to remember to tell Him on a daily basis that I am nothing without Him.  I don’t want to live my life without acknowledging that He is working in and through me at all times. In all honesty, anything that we do without Him is done in vain.  Now, that doesn’t mean that He won’t take our messes and work it out for His good, because He will and does according to Romans 8:28.  “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose.”  Hallelujah!!  He is a loving Father who not only genuinely cares for us, but genuinely loves us.  Jeremiah 29:11 says, “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

So, again I ask: “Are we allowing God to work in and through us as these “lines” or “voids” are created in our lives?  God takes things out of our lives that we do not need, whether it’s people, things, habits, etc. Are we allowing Him to then fill that void with Himself? Or, are we trying to fill it with something or someone else? My hope is that as these things take place in our lives that we will allow Holy Spirit to do what He does best … simply help us.  After Jesus was resurrected from death to life, He said that it was to our advantage that He go back to Heaven.  Physically speaking He could only be in one place at a time … like us. But, He told us that when He left, He would send Holy Spirit to be our Helper.  Holy Spirit is our Helper!!  How awesome is that?  There is nothing he cannot fix or heal …nothing.  It’s a matter of whether or not we allow Him to do so.  I hope that you will allow Holy Spirit to work in your life as He sees fit.  He truly knows what is best for each and every one of us.  Trust in Him!     

God is Love. Jesus is Our Example.

This morning as I began my quiet time with the Lord, I had to do some warfare first thing. The enemy came and began reminding me of what someone called me while I was at an internship in California a few years ago.  You see, I didn’t “pray” the same way these folks did, and they didn’t like that very much.  Unless under extreme attack from the enemy, I usually sit quietly worshipping the Lord and I write in a notebook what I say to the Lord and what I believe He is saying to me.  I actually don’t think there’s anything wrong with this.  It’s who I am.   Also, a question that had been asked was; “Has anyone ever done something to you where you simply forgave them without confronting them?”  Immediately, a situation came into my mind and I spoke out loud saying, “Yes, I had a situation where I was led of the Holy Spirit to forgive without confronting.” Well, immediately the pastor in charge apparently didn’t agree and showed it by  her facial expression.  Another intern asked the pastor if she disagreed with what I had said.  The pastor then, in a very passive-passive-aggressive way, said that she didn’t agree and that we should not be “religious doormats.”  I explained myself further to explain that I had followed the leading of the Holy Spirit and then shared an example where I did confront when led to do so and when needed. At that time, this pastor verbally abused me more and then allowed the other ten interns to verbally abuse me while I sat there and took what they had to say. I remember just looking to the ceiling quietly, while praying in my head, “Forgive them, they know not what they’re doing.”

Sometimes when I sit down to worship and pray, the enemy will attack in this way.  I have to run him off.

The next thing that happened this morning was that I turned to Proverbs 31 for my daily Proverb.  Immediately, the enemy came attacking me about another time where this scripture was used to “beat me up” spiritually about 3 years ago.  You see, at the time, I had been married to a man who was abusive to me, not physically, but mentally, emotionally, verbally, and financially.  At the time we had been married for 26 years. (Shortly after this, he divorced me.) It was growing more and more difficult by the day to tolerate what he dished out without arguing.  Over the years, I had learned to choose my battles well.  In this particular situation, my then husband had caused a lot of trouble for me at the church we had only recently began attending during a conversation with the worship pastor.  Later, I had a chat with the worship pastor and another pastor at the church to let them know of my situation because I did not appreciate the way my then husband set me up for a troubled time there.  I mean, no one wants to get started off on the wrong foot in anything that they do … am I right?  So, I met with them and we chatted a while.  The head pastor suggested that I fast for my husband.  Early on in the conversation, I had agreed … wanting to be agreeable.  But, the longer we went on in the conversation, I knew that I could not and would not fast for him.  It just wasn’t in me to do that for him.  There was so much going on I just couldn’t do it. (I was hurting and needed support, not criticism!) As we were wrapping up the chat, he asked me again if I was going to fast for him.  I said, “I’m sorry, I just cannot do it. I’m just being honest with you.  I just cannot do it.”  Immediately, the expression on his face changed towards me as if I were the devil, himself and he reached for his Bible.  He then proceeded to read Proverbs 31, the portion about the virtuous woman, out loud to me.  Immediately, I knew exactly what he was doing. Previous to this situation, I had sat through a teaching on this same scripture and had felt very confident and encouraged by the Lord that I had been doing my best to be what the Bible describes as a virtuous woman.  As he read, I prayed for God to be with me.  The pastor finished the Proverb and proceeded to ask me; “Are you this woman?”  In confidence, I answered, “Yes.”  He looked and me and said, “I think you better go home and read this Proverb over and over for the next 21 days and insert your name in here.”  After that, I was cut out of the worship team and pretty much treated like a piece of trash at the church.  Needless to say, it didn’t take very long for me to leave.  I’m was not and still am not a worthless piece of trash for some pastor to verbally abuse and treat poorly.  I know my worth in Christ!

Now, I don’t share these things to make you feel sorry for me.  I say them because I want to share these terrible experiences so that we can learn from them.  None … none … of these situations are acceptable behavior at all!  I find them to be totally ridiculous!  God does not want us to treat fellow followers of Christ this way … no way!  The church exists so that we can help each other through difficult times.  The church should be a safe place … a “hospital for the hurting.”  Why these things happened, I have no idea.  I just know that God allowed them to happen to me.  And, I’m quite certain that I’m not the only person within the Body of Christ who has been treated in this way.  I actually have many other examples that I could share that fall within this category, but these are the ones that came into my mind today.

These behaviors that I have shared with you are simply religious attitudes.  Jesus would have called these people “white washed tombs.” These folks are clearly examples of the Pharisees of Jesus’ time.  This is unacceptable.  This is not an example of love at all.  These are examples of “religious people” pushing people around … namely me in these examples.  The only reasoning I have for why people do this is that they lack love and simple human kindness.  I don’t  believe for a minute that Jesus would have treated me this way had I been speaking to Him face to face in these situations.

I have to tell you that when these things happened I was somewhat hurt.  It was difficult for me to believe that there was a purpose to all of this.  But, I chose to overcome and believe that God had a purpose.  Of course, it’s much easier for me to talk about this now than it was then.  You see, God has been showing me what not to do when I’m in a position like these folks for more years than I’d like admit.  It’s been a long road.  Let me be very clear, God doesn’t like this behavior, but He will allow it when He knows that it can be used to build strength and bring wisdom to those involved.  I surely hope that I have learned all that He wanted me to learn through these situations.  Forgiving them is key … they, apparently, know not what they’re doing.  I was able to overcome and move on with the Lord.  But, I have been committed to be all that God wants me to be, even when the road becomes more than a bit challenging.  Yes, sometimes … many times … I have said that I’m “done.”  LOL … but, never really.  I think sometimes it just helps to get the bad thoughts and feelings out to enable me to move on to what God has next for me.

Now, what if this had happened to a young or baby Christian?  (Oh, I feel my blood pressure rising even as I type this.)  At the same time this happened, and at a nearby “safe” church here in Arkansas where this took place, I was walking with a baby Christian.  She, was treated very poorly by some of the people over the fact that the person in charge didn’t like that she had hot pink hair and a lot of tattoos.  When she shared with me that this had happened, I prayed for her and talked to her about what was said.  I explained to her that this was not God and it’s not how Jesus would treat her.  I explained to her that these were imperfect people like myself and her, and that we should forgive them and move on.  She was so damaged by the treatment of these people that she walked away from God and eventually walked away from our friendship.  This broke my heart.

You see, these acts that are not love, hurt people … some more deeply than others.  Young Christians, in particular, do not always understand that people, even though Christians, will sometimes hurt others.  Although God’s light shines through us, we are not God.  We are still fallible human beings.

Church … we need to get back to caring for people other than the ones we see at church every week.  If we’re not kind and loving to those in our world … whether they know Jesus as their Savior or not … we’re doing it wrong.  I’ll say it again!  If we’re not kind and loving to those in our world … whether they know Jesus as their Savior or not … we’re doing it wrong.

If you’re reading this and you’re someone who has been hurt by the church, whether leadership or a church member, I encourage you to talk to God about it.  Forgive the people and allow God to heal your heart.  Hindering your walk over people is not worth it.  Forgive them and find a good Bible believing church, get involved and remember what you have learned.

On the other hand, if you’re reading this and you feel some guilt because you could possibly be one of the people in this blog who did the hurting, I encourage you to repent and find your first love, Jesus, again.  “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.  God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him.  1 John 4:16

God is love.  Jesus is our example.  Let’s arise to the occasion and love others better … like God loves us. 

The following is a blog I wrote two years ago when I was in California.

With no doubt, the Lord had led me to go there.  The initial idea was to be an intern at a church, but quickly I realized that God had other plans for me.  This was a test.  I had been controlled most of my life by a few people.  God had delivered me from that. I don’t let people control or manipulate me. But, this was quite the test.  I was submerged in a “society” of extremely controlling people … to the point that, at times, I was a bit fearful, mainly because I didn’t understand the “why” of what was taking place.  At times, it was like I was living out a nightmare.

Long story short, the Lord had me leave the internship, but stay in Cali. I don’t mind telling you that, at times, I was truly doubting whether or not I had really heard the Lord.  Looking back, I see that he was stretching me. Stretching my faith and trust in Him.  I ended up working with a ministry that taught Afghan refugee women how to speak and read English, which was very rewarding.

This blog is just a small portion of what I endured while in California.  ~ angie  

   

A Fool and his Folly... Proverbs 26:4-5

By :: angie c bilyeu     10.27.2016

The past three months of my life have been a bit of a whirl wind, to say the least. In a matter of just a few days, the Lord directed me to leave family, friends, and basically everything behind in Arkansas and temporarily relocate to California. God’s grace has been absolutely amazing…hands down…because this has been an extremely trying transition!

I’ll have to be honest with you, I wasn’t sure as to the “why” I was coming out here until about 4-5 weeks into my residency here in California. Now that I’ve been here for two days shy of two months, I have a much better idea of the “why.” I wouldn’t say that I fully know all the reasons because God always tends to reveal some in “the during” and some in “the after.” It always amazes me how He always works things out for my good. I trust Him. I trust Him, fully.

Yesterday, I was thinking about the scripture in Proverbs. 4 “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, lest you also be like him. 5 Answer a fool according to his folly lest he be wise in his own eyes. Proverbs 26:4 As I was thinking about some of the crazy things that have happened since I left Arkansas, this scripture came to mind. I looked it up, read it and pondered it throughout the day. This morning, much to my surprise, it was in my daily Bible reading. I was overjoyed, praising God for the way He does things and laughing because of the joy it brought me!

Early on in my arrival, a young woman began challenging my boundaries. I’m sure she didn’t realize that she was crossing boundaries that she shouldn’t. It’s ok. I could see that she doesn’t have a good sense of boundaries for herself. For the most part, I know and understand how to handle these situations…only because of God’s leading and guiding and not because of anything within me. I rely on God’s help to know what to do and when to do it. I once was the young woman who had no sense of good boundaries. I have allowed God to teach me. Therefore, I now am ultra respectful of the boundaries of others and also keep safe boundaries for myself.  Anyway, this person crossed a boundary with me. I didn’t say anything to her. I let it go, forgave her and prayed about it. Soon thereafter, she did it again, but in a different way. This time, I asked her a question where she had to answer either “yes” or “no” to her foolishness. Well, she didn’t like this at all. She was immediately offended and then went around spouting off about what had taken place between the two of us. Never mind the fact that she was out of line in the first place.

This is exactly what the proverb is talking about. It seems that it contradicts itself, but really it doesn’t. You see, when dealing with foolishness of others, you have to know when to speak and when not to speak, and ultimately, either way, they won’t “get it.” When you don’t speak, said person believes they are wise in their own eyes. When you do speak, they usually get offended and show their immaturity. When dealing with a person like this, you cannot win. It truly is best to simply walk away and just keep the peace when coming in contact with them.

This person from that moment on did everything she could to get into “my world.” It’s not that I was unfriendly or mean. I was simply keeping safe, healthy boundaries for myself. This wasn’t my “first rodeo,” so the saying goes. The thing is, even though this person stirred up all of strife and even tried to “teach me” where she believes I’m in error, she has no idea that she is the one in error. She has chosen to be “wise in her own eyes.” I don’t say that arrogantly or as though I am wise in my own eyes at all. I say it extremely humbly. I have been patient to allow the Lord to show me exactly what He wanted me to learn from the situation without spouting off and gossiping to others about the situation.

Basically, the Proverb says that you cannot win with a fool. You cannot answer a fool who is “wise in their own eyes.” You must be cautious and use wisdom if you choose to answer what the Bible refers to as a fool.  The truth of the matter is, this person is loved by God as much as you and I are. He wants a better way for this person as much as He wants a better way for you and for me.

If and when we find ourselves in a situation like this, we must remember that even though someone is crossing boundaries and being disrespectful, we must take the high road, which I did, in this case. Thank You, Jesus…who enabled me to do so!! More often than not, we must remain silent, which I also did. God will fight these battles for us when we allow Him to do so. (Exodus 14:14) Silence doesn’t mean we don’t understand a situation. Silence doesn’t necessarily mean we don’t have anything to say, either. For me in this particular situation as a leader, I wasn’t in a position as a leader who had authority to confront and correct, but rather a follower. I knew my boundaries and chose to keep them. It wasn’t my place to correct this person, so I forgave and let it go, but, I kept safe boundaries for myself with this person from that point on. Wisdom was available, accessed and used in this situation. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who will give it without reproach. James 1:5 I rely on this scripture A LOT!! God has never failed me. If I fail to use wisdom in a situation, it’s not because of God, but rather because I didn’t ask for, access, or use it. Wisdom is always there for us because God is always there for us with an infinite supply of wisdom. We must choose it. We must also pray for the person who is the offender. The Bible says to love your neighbor and pray for your enemies. Mark 12:30-31, Matthew 5:43-48. In this case, this person has no idea of their folly. That’s ok. It’s currently where she is in her walk. If she continues with the Lord and allows Him to do so, He will teach her a better way in time … like He has done and continues to do with me because that's what I choose with all my heart.

Bottom line … be cautious when dealing with what the Bible refers to as fools. Don’t fall into their trap. Use wisdom that God provides. Know who you are in Christ. When you know who you are in Him, you don’t have to try to win people over to your side because you know that the only opinion that matters is God’s opinion of you. ~ Selah

How Would You React?

Yesterday, I pulled into my local grocery store to pick up a few items.  I drove to the general area where I almost always park, pulled up behind a truck and waited for it to move so I could pull into a parking space.  Suddenly, the truck quickly and loudly pulled away as if the driver was mad at the world … speeding through the parking lot. Instantly, I had a sick feeling … a feeling that I should not leave my car, but I didn’t know why.  I stayed in my car and only moments later, the man who had been in the truck was on foot headed for my car.  He saw that I was still in my car, began yelling something at me and then turned around and walked back to his truck. I realized that he was angry at me for some reason … for pulling up behind him in a parking lot??  This was all very strange.  I took out my phone, got the camera ready, snapped a few shots of him and his truck for my own records, and headed inside the store.  All the while he was yelling something at me.  I couldn’t understand what he was saying and didn’t stick around to find out. I said nothing and walked into the store. I don’t mind telling you that I was more than just a little bit fearful.  He was so loud, people in the parking lot stopped and looked at him to see what was happening.  There  was a woman there who was pleading with him saying, “No, don’t do this … don’t do this!”  I went into the store as quickly as I could and found the store manager.  I explained what happened, which was actually nothing, but me driving through the parking lot to find a parking space. No altercations, no frustration, no horn honking … nothing.  This is indeed one of the strangest things I’ve ever seen take place. The manager headed outside and I went with him.  About that time, the man pulled up in his truck yelling absurd accusations about me to the manager.  I just stood there and didn’t say a word.  When we walked away, I told the manager to watch the video. This was nothing but “much ado about nothing.”

Once inside, a lady approached me to make sure that I was ok.  Yes, I was ok. But, yes, this had really happened! It wasn’t a bad, weird dream! I told her that God takes care of me at that I’m ok.

As I was walking through the store contemplating what had just happened I thought to myself, “The war we fight is not with flesh and blood.” (Ephesians 6:12) This was nothing but an attack … a VERY public attack of the enemy. I began praying for the man, his children’s and his wife’s salvation. (His children were in the truck with him) Through my own experiences in life, I understand that his display is only a minute sampling of what takes place in the home. The woman pleading with him to behave himself is proof of that.

After church today, I went to pick up a friend of mine from her church because there were a group of us going out for lunch. She had told me where I could pick her up, but was unsure of the exact time. So, I drove there and pulled up behind an SUV to wait for her. While I waited, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me that my pulling up here and waiting behind the vehicle in front of me was no different than what I had done yesterday.  I pulled up behind a vehicle and waited patiently … that’s all. The difference in the two was the hearts of the drivers.

I have no idea what is going on in the life of the driver of that truck yesterday, but there’s one thing I do know :: He needs Jesus!

Jesus tells us in Luke 6:27- 28 to love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.  Later in verses 32-36, Jesus says to us, “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And, if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And, if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners expecting to be repaid in full.  Jesus then said, “Love your enemies, do good to them and lend to them without expecting anything back. Then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, because He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. Be merciful just as your Father is merciful.”

You see it would have been easy to be kind to the man in the SUV in front of me at church. He didn’t speed off, acting crazy, and yelling at me … for no apparent reason. The real challenge was being kind to the man at the grocery store who did those things and began yelling at me and embarrassing me in the busy parking lot full of onlookers at a grocery store. I chose to speak no words to him. I chose to pray for him and his family. I don’t say these things to pat myself on the back, because I’ll assure you that I have not always chosen the proper way to respond to people like this. I used to respond the way I as taught to respond … and that wasn’t always good! (Trust me … just sayin’!) It takes time alone with God to understand how to be led by Holy Spirit, who teaches us as we allow Him to do so. And, I still don’t always get it right. I’m human, just like you. Maybe you’re someone who was taught a different way or the proper way to handle an issue like this from the time you were young and this isn’t a struggle for you. Hey, that’s great! But, I assure you, there is probably a different topic of struggle in your life. We all have struggles. We all have baggage … just like the man who sparked the idea for this blog. This side of Heaven, we, as followers of Christ, will always have something to work on about ourselves.

The point of my telling you this story is to urge you, as a follower of Christ, to love your enemies. It may mean to bite your tongue and simply pray for a person or persons. Let the love of God flow through your life to others. In order for us to do that, we, ourselves, need to be filled to overflowing with the Spirit of God. May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13  May my lips overflow with praise, for you have taught me your decrees. Psalm 119:171  God’s ways are not like our ways. His ways are higher than our ways. Just as the Heavens are higher than the Earth, so are God’s thoughts and ways higher than ours. (Isaiah 55:8-9)

I was about to cut this blog off here, but I feel the leading of the Spirit to add more onto it. It has been my experience that many within the Body of Christ believe that in a situation similar to this one, it would be their place to preach to the man, tell him “how it is” … or what some would even say, “beat the man over the head with the Bible.” NO … NO … just don’t do it!! Do you know that can do more harm than good? Ensure your servants wellbeing; do not let the arrogant oppress me. Psalm 119:122 I have to tell you that I believe that this scripture is a believer (there is no credit for an author of this Psalm) asking God to protect him from arrogant non-believers (Or maybe eve arrogant believers???). But, I also believe that I have seen arrogance within the body of Christ. And, many times, I have seen this arrogance hurt believers and non-believers, alike.  JUST DON’T DO IT! I cannot stress this enough. This is not love. This is not God. Arrogance is not of God! I have experienced this from believers and I can tell you, first hand, that it is not helpful.

Check your heart.

Think before you speak.

Are you speaking words because you truly want to help (love) or because you want to share your “expertise” or whatever?

Pray, church. Pray! God is the only One who is capable of getting ahold of a lost, hardened heart. Confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16

Church, let’s rise up by hitting our knees! It’s the way to win the lost to the Lord. Invite people to church. Be loving, be kind. Jesus went about doing good. (Acts 10:38) Follow in His footsteps, we can’t go wrong by doing this!

    

To encourage ... or not?

A few weeks ago, I decided to add running to my exercise regimen.  There’s a small lake nearby with a paved trail that’s nearly 2 miles around it.  Now, I’m not really much of a runner.  It’s not my gig, but change is good!!

As I made my way around the lake a few times, I came upon a group of kiddos riding their bikes.  There were 5-7 elementary aged boys and girls.  We met on a small incline.  As I watched them conquer this rise in the pavement, there was one little girl who was struggling terribly.  I could see it in her face.  She looked defeated.  At that moment, I began to verbally encourage her.  “You’ve got this, sweetie … keep going … you doing great!” Almost instantly, she looked up and responded to my encouragement.  A smile came to her face and she made it up that incline.  All she needed was someone to not just notice that she was struggling, but to take, literally, a few seconds and be an encourager to her “dilemma” in that moment.

I instantly thanked God for putting me on that trail that day.  I had been having a rough time, myself, and just being able to help someone does wonders for the soul.  In that moment, I knew I would share this story.

You see how often as we go through our everyday life, do we have the opportunity to be an encourager to someone?  My guess is that it’s more often than we even realize.  I could have paid the kiddos no attention and  continued on my way.  But, I believe that the Lord led me to not only see the little girl, but to speak encouragement to her.  That’s my goal in life; to be aware, by the leading of the Holy Spirit, of others around me who need encouraging.  I want to be the best encourager to as many people as I can possibly be.  You may wonder why this is important to me.  Well, I have had a pretty challenging life.  Not, that we all don’t have challenges in our lives, because, of course, we all do.  But, some of us have more challenges than others.  And, without a doubt in my mind, knowing that my life has had an extra heaping of challenges, I know that I don’t have to look very far to find someone who has had many more challenges than myself.  So, I don’t claim to have the market on challenges.  But, I do believe that I see myself with realistic eyes … because of the the wisdom that God, and God alone, has given me. So, with all that said, I assure you that I know just how important it is to receive encouragement.  And, I also know just how difficult it is to receive NO encouragement.

I’d like to shift gears here and point out that if you consider yourself a follower of Christ, you are in a unique position to encourage others with your words.  It’s extremely important that we make a conscious choice to do this.  I want you to give some thought to Jesus for just a minute.  He gave up Heaven to come to earth to live as a human so that He could relate to our challenges. John 3:13, John 6:33, 38  He died on the cross for our many, MANY sins, rose from the dead, and is now in Heaven at the right hand of our Heavenly Father praying for us … constantly.  He’s praying for us and encouraging us.  I believe He saw that little girl struggling, knew that I would cross her path, and, by the Holy Spirit, laid it on my heart to encourage her, effectively giving her the encouraging nudge that she needed in that moment for what may have been a big breakthrough for her.  What may seem like a  minuscule breakthrough for us may be a huge breakthrough for someone else.  It’s not our job to decide whether or not someone needs or deserves encouragement.  It’s our job to encourage others.  Encouraging us … praying for us … is what Jesus is doing for us.  And, I assure you, from my own experiences, it’s not because we deserve it.  As a follower of Christ, our goal is to be more like Jesus every day.

So, I ask you: “Are you encouraging others in your world the way God is encouraging you?” It’s important that we do encourage others in this walk of life.  As you encourage others, you’re effectively sowing encouragement into your own life. “Do not be deceived:  God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. Galatians 6: &-10  That pretty much sums up what I’m attempting to convey in this blog.  God wants what is best for us. Jeremiah 29:11 He doesn’t want to hurt or harm us.  He is ever unceasingly praying for and encouraging us.  We should do the same for others.  When you have the notion to encourage or help someone else, know that that thought is from God because He is good.  We don’t naturally want to do good on our own because of our flesh and sin nature.  That goodness comes from above.  And, it’s to our benefit, as well as the benefit of the one(s) we’re encouraging/helping to follow through with that thought.

I encourage you to keep your eyes and ears open for folks around you who may need encouragement or help.  Lord, I pray right now for all who are reading this that you remove the scales from our eyes and unclog our ears that we may see what You want us to see and hear what you want us to hear.  I pray that when we see or hear a need, we will respond the way You would want us to respond as obedient children.  Lord, I thank you in advance for opportunities and for the breakthroughs that will ensue due to our walking out Your plan for our lives.  Thank You Father, in Jesus’ mighty name. Amen!