A Closer Walk

It seems that every one of us needs two things above and beyond the three basics for survival which are food (and water), shelter, and clothing. The two things referred to are encouragement and humor. At the end of a day have you ever thought to yourself, “If I hear one more word of encouragement I'm just going to scream”? When the road is long, the way is weary, and the load is heavy, encouragement can help provide the strength and willingness to continue on. In other words the, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can,” from “The Little Engine That Could.” Humor, or even better, outright laughter, almost always makes the load seem lighter and the day brighter.
“Therefore encourage one another, and build up one another, just as you also are doing,” 1 Thessalonians 5:11 NASB. In his letter to the church at Thessalonica the Apostle Paul encourages the members of this local church to be about the business of encouraging one another. But he also says that he knows they are already doing that. He knows they are offering encouragement to each other already. But even so he encourages them to continue encouraging and building up each other. Encouragement causes a person to be built up. Today we sometimes refer to that as an affirmation. It has been said that for each negative comment hurled our way it takes a minimum of at least four affirmations for us to be able to overcome that.
The desire for, and even need of, encouragement for a human being cannot be overstated. If all we hear are negative comments we may come to the position of believing them. “I really am no good.” “I really can't do anything right.” Going down that road eventually ends at the destination of “What's the point in even trying?” Make sense? We as human beings literally need encouragement. Especially during the dark times. One way to facilitate or help with that is to sit down with a friend or family member and talk through the weight of the load we are carrying. That by itself will provide some degree of relief. “Getting things off our chest,” so to speak. My maternal grandmother used to say, “A joy shared is a joy doubled. A burden shared is a burden halved.” The person we are conversing with may even be able to offer suggestions or perhaps take action themselves to help lighten the load. A spouse or close friend or a family member would be helpful in this.
Another thing to help encourage us is to listen to a motivational or inspirational speaker. For example, go on Youtube and search for Steve Harvey talks. This man has been through some very difficult times. Did you know that he lived in his car for awhile? (By the way, you can live in your car. But you can never drive your house, line from the TV show “Blue Bloods.” Hearing these speakers encourages us to see our own situation in a different light and consequently seems to make our own load a bit lighter. We can also find videos of pastors giving sermons which could be helpful to us; although I've not specifically looked for encouragement videos. Quotes can be helpful and that's why so many have been used in this space. “Failure provides the opportunity to start over more intelligently,” Henry Ford. “If you see someone without a smile, give them one of yours,” Dolly Parton. “It isn't the size of the dog in the fight that counts, it's the size of the fight in the dog that wins,” Arthur G. Lewis.
When humor comes into our lives it seems to make the day brighter. A funny saying, a small joke, anything that brings a smile to our face is like a breeze of fresh air blowing the dust and cobwebs out of a room. “Thus says the LORD, ‘Yet again there shall be heard in this place, of which you say, “It is a waste, without man and without beast,” that is, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast, the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those who say, “Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, For the LORD is good, For His lovingkindness is everlasting,” Jeremiah 33:11 NASB. God had told the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah that where there had been sadness and desolation there would be gladness and joy. It is helpful for us to remember what our God has already done for us in the past. “Then Samuel took a stone and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and he named it Ebenezer (stone of help), saying, “Thus far the LORD has helped us,”1 Samuel 7:12 Amplified Bible. (The Amplified Bible is a literal translation and it seeks to bring all the nuances of the Hebrew or Greek text through into our English.) Thus far the Lord has helped us.
One way we can uplift ourselves and encourage our spirits is to praise our Lord. “Praise the LORD! For it is good to sing praises to our God; For it is pleasant and praise is becoming...He heals the brokenhearted, And binds up their wounds,” Psalm 147:1 and 3, NASB. If we choose to sing our praises that works as well. For many that's actually the best way for them to bring light into their spirit. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones,” Proverbs 17:22 KJV. Our God tells us here that a merry, or joyful, heart does good like a medicine.
Each of us seem to need encouragement. And a little humor or laughter thrown in does us good as well. Offer praises to our God for what He has already done. Because that will encourage and brighten our spirits. As readers who have chosen to join this “Closer Walk” with us I offer you a challenge. I encourage you to daily bring some morsel of encouragement or humor to people you come in contact with this week. Then do the same next week and the week after. Or even better, try to form a habit of offering encouragement to those around us. Remember, there is no such thing as too much encouragement. Amen?