THE NEED FOR THE MINISTRY OF ENCOURAGEMENT

 

THE NEED FOR THE MINISTRY OF ENCOURAGEMENT

June 11/6/.23

By Rev. Michael Benson Ajayi

Proverbs 12:25 NKJV “ Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.”  

        Encouragement is the act of giving someone support, confidence or hope , it is the persuasion to do or to continue something it is also the act of trying to stimulate the development of an activity , state or belief  . The opposite of this is discouragement , the world is full of discouragers and that makes the ministry of encouragement of necessity in the body of Christ.

      God does not give an assignment he has not empowered us to carry out but it is usually the activities of discouragers that seem to make such tasks often seem too difficult or impossible. This was what the exiled Jews felt when they began to rebuild the broken walls under the leadership of prophet Nehemiah in Neh 4:1-5 “Sanballat was very angry when he learned that we were rebuilding the wall. He flew into a rage and mocked the Jews,  saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers, "What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they're doing? Do they think they can build the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap—and charred ones at that?" Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, "That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it!" Then I prayed, "Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads, and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land! Do not ignore their guilt. Do not blot out their sins, for they have provoked you to anger here in front of the builders." Nehemiah was an encourager and through his leadership the project was completed .

      There are many uncompleted projects in our lives lying dormant requiring the service of an encourager to be accomplished. Encouragers impact our lives positively in so many ways . Words from an encourager results in healing , the scriptures says in Proverbs 16:24 TLB  “ Kind words are like honey-enjoyable and healthful. There words are a source of joy to their audience 1 John 1:4 says NKJV “And these things we write to you that your joy may be full. “The joy of the lord is the source of health to the emotionally , financially  and physically ill . The joy of the lord is our strength .

     Sometimes all that we need is to know there is someone who will always be there whenever we need them . Proverbs 17:17 NLT Says “A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.” Encouragers are always there to share words of love comfort and appreciation during our low moments.  The believer in Jesus Christ is called in to the ministry of encouragement

   He or She is an optimist : we are to encourage one another in our faith-walk 1 Thessalonians 4:18 NIV says “ Therefore encourage each other with these words.” Make a commitment to the lord to be an encourager for good while trusting the Holy Spirit to work miracles through you . Intentionally, choose to see good prospects in people regardless of their situation .

Prayer : Heavenly Father forgive me of my sins against you , I believe Jesus Christ died and was raised again for my salvation , I receive him as lord and savior and receive the Holy Spirit and grace to be a source of strength to the weak to the praise of your name. Amen.

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