Pastor Stephen Dedman

Tag: encourage

Are You An Encourager?

Encouragement

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort those who are in any trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. “
II Corinthians 1:3-4

Do you put a smile on other people’s faces? Better yet, do you know someone that needs to be comforted today?

We all need to be encouraged. The entire world needs to be comforted. But who is going to do it?

In today’s Scripture, Paul says that just as we are comforted we should also comfort others. So let me encourage you to be an encourager.

That was Paul’s point that he was getting across to the church at Corinth. The world needs to see that Christians are people who are encouraged by God and through His word and through His Spirit.

The best way to encourage others is to be positive and uplifting. We love being around people who uplift us and make us feel great. We love to surround ourselves with people who bring out the best in us.

So let’s be that person that we love to be around. We need to be the person who instills positive beliefs into other people. The only way to do that is to be encouraged yourself.

Here is the thing… when we are encouraged, we can encourage others. When we are positive we can instill positive motivation into others. We have to feed ourselves first and then we can give what we have to others. This is why it is important for us to stay in the Word of God and meditate on it.

Today, there is going to be someone close to you that needs to be encouraged. God is entrusting you to be the one to share a positive influence of Christian belief.

Take God’s promises to heart and live them out through your words and actions. Motivate others to focus on what is true from God. His promises will endure forever and His words lead to life everlasting.

Pray

Lord, instill into me the courage and joy that I need today. Out of the abundance that You have given me, I will give to others. Let others see You in me.

Wait On The Lord

Encouragement, Trust

Wait On The Lord

Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
‭‭John‬ ‭11:32‬

Waiting For God’s Blessings

One of the greatest things about God is everything good happens in His timing. There are great rewards for those who patiently wait for the Lord to show up.

Lazarus had been dead for 4 days when Jesus arrives to Bethany to perform His last public miracle.  Mary and Martha come to Jesus and they are both an emotional wreck.  A messenger had been sent to tell Jesus to come quickly so He could heal their brother but He delayed and Lazarus died.  As Mary and Martha are mourning the death of their brother, Jesus shows up. They are sad, angry and even blaming Jesus for not saving their brother.  Little did they know something wonderful was about to happen.  Jesus walks over to the tomb and cries out with a loud voice for Lazarus to come forth and instantly he comes walking out. Everyone who saw was amazed and Mary and Martha rejoiced.

Jesus is never late showing up.  He knows what is happening in your life but the timing is all part of His master plan.  Sometimes we develop a bad case of “stinkin’ thinkin'”.  We think we know what is best and we don’t wait for the Lord to show up.  This is when we mess up and take matters into our own hands.  Abraham made this mistake with Sarah’s servant, Hagar, and forced a son (Ishmael) before having Isaac (Genesis 16)?  It caused years of havoc.

Always wait upon the Lord (Isaiah 40:31) because He is going to show up.

Prayer

Pray for the Lord to give you a spiritual mindset to understand His master plan and patiently wait for all things to come together in His perfect timing.

Pray And Don’t Lose Heart

Encouragement

Pray And Don’t Lose Heart

And he (Jesus) told them (disciples) a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart.
‭‭Luke‬ ‭18:1‬

 

Fighting For A Good Cause

Please take a moment and read Luke 18:1-8.  Right before Jesus tells the twelve disciples a parable (an earthly story with a heavenly meaning) he says the words “keep praying and don’t lose heart”.  The reason he said these words was to encourage them to stay motivated.  In the previous chapter (Luke 17:20-37) Jesus was speaking about his coming death, the end times and the coming of the Kingdom and it was bothering them.  He knew it was troubling them.

Jesus tells a story that everyone could relate to.  He tells of an unrighteous judge who did not fear God or man and would not help bring justice to a poor widowed woman.  She was helpless and hopeless but she didn’t give up fighting for a good cause.  Finally, out of distress, he grants her what she wanted.  The reason he helped her was not because he wanted to do something good, it was selfishness because he was tired of being bothered by her everyday.  He wanted to get rid of her and by granting her legal help she would leave him alone.  Her persistence paid off.

Jesus told this story so Christians understand the urgency of persistent prayer and to never lose hope.  He meant there would be times when you just want to give up and give in, but don’t!  The Lord says keep praying, keep hoping and stay encouraged.  He wanted them to realize they were fighting for a good cause.

Let this message saturate your life today.  You are not fighting a losing battle.  Jesus is victorious!  Satan is going to be chained-up, lock-up, and cast-out. When Satan tries to discourage you, just remind him of that.

Prayer

Praise Jesus for His victory over sin.  There is power in prayer.  Those who keep praying never lose hope.  Those who lose hope are the ones who stop praying.