Encourage each other every day.

Hebrews 3:13 (VOICE)

 

Encouraging one another is essential because it empowers others in their spiritual journey. At some point in our lives, we have all received words of encouragement and been impacted by them. Because they were facing persecution and opposition for their faith, Apostle Paul encouraged believers to encourage one another on a regular basis. Wouldn't you want to be encouraged when your faith is weak, and your joy has been robbed by adverse situations of life?

Encouragement is a practical form of love.

An encouraging word in season helps release us from our irrational fears and doubts. It comes like a refreshing breeze, restoring and healing our broken hearts, especially while we are hurting and in pain.

Some Christians have a unique gift for encouraging others.

Barnabas, for example, was an encouragement extraordinaire. His given name was Joses, but he was such a gift to the early church that the apostles nicknamed him "Barnabas," which means "Son of Encouragement" (Acts 4:36). The term for "encouragement" in Greek is paraklēsis, which literally means "one who is called to stand next to." The same word is used to characterise the Holy Spirit as a Comforter.

They would not have gone on to accomplish great things for God if Barnabas had not stood with Paul, a rejected Christian with a troubled past, or John Mark, a failed missionary.

Perhaps encouraging people is not something that comes easy to you, or perhaps you need some encouragement yourself. Do not stay disheartened. If you are a believer, the one thing you need to know right now is that the Holy Spirit is the one who comforts and encourages you, and He resides inside you. This means that you, like Barnabas, can ask God to produce a greater measure of this gift in your life and become a child of encouragement.