Encourage

 

The following verse is a great reminder that a little encouragement goes a long way. 

 

“Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up.” – Ecclesiastes 4:9-10

 (https://www.biblestudytools.com/ecclesiastes/passage/?q=ecclesiastes+4:9-12)

 

This time of year brings added stress to officials, coaches, players, administrators and fans. Teams are fighting for the postseason and coaches are fighting for jobs. Officials are balancing end-of-year work responsibilities while working towards finishing the year strong as a crew. Also, at this time of the year, we experience an increase in family interactions which brings its own set of challenges. In the middle of stress, how do we encourage?

 

At some point, each of us has been on the receiving end of encouragement. Encouragement takes many forms--a few cheerful words, a short uplifting note, or maybe just the steadying comfort of someone’s presence. How do you feel when you receive these gifts of encouragement? Encouragement usually makes it easier to handle each day's pressure knowing you had someone else by our side. 

 

As we enter this week’s games, pressure continues to mount for teams to win and for officials to administer games appropriately. Embrace Mark Twain’s words…."[t]he best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up." Let’s be the “two” in Ecclesiastes 4:9 where we are the ones others can count on to support them when they fall because we are an encourager.

 

"Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing." - 1 Thessalonians 5:11

 

Credit to Ryan Wingers