The Gift of Encouragement
Page Four
The Ultimate Encourager
There are many people who encourage us, but the ultimate source of all encouragement is God, our Creator. So let me share the ultimate foundations of encouragement—God’s encouragement to us. Right after he put the first man and woman in the Garden of Eden, God encouraged them to be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth. God told Adam to name all of the animals. And He gave Adam and Eve each other to love, support, and encourage. He didn’t leave them in the garden abandoned and alone. His presence was with them. We should all be encouraged to know that God, the Creator of the universe, has gifted each of us and wants each of us to live a meaningful, fruitful life.
But God’s encouragement didn’t stop with creating us and gifting us. When Adam and Eve sinned (Romans 3:23), He didn’t leave them in their failure. He pursued them and provided a way out.
God sent His son, Jesus Christ, to earth to die for us and to become the great mediator. In fact, God says in His Word, the Bible, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus” (I Timothy 2:5). One of the clearest messages of Scripture is John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Now we’re beginning to feel ENCOURAGED! Even though we sin, God sticks with us. We can relate personally to Him and be forgiven and live as His sons and daughters.
This seems so easy, but for some people it’s rather hard. Somehow they feel they need to work for their salvation – to do something to earn it. But that’s not true; salvation is entirely of God. It’s even He who gives us the little faith we need to step up to the plate and say, “God, I don’t understand it all, but I believe you, and I surely need you to come into my life just now. Forgive me of my sins and be my Lord and Savior.”
How about that for encouragement! It really boggles the mind. We’re so tiny—so microscopic—while God is our Creator and the King of kings. But now we’re one with Him for eternity!
Your eternal contract is assured in this portion of God’s Word: “I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28).
 Wait on the Lord: be of
good courage, and He shall
strengthen your heart.
Now you’ve done it! God has offered you salvation, you’ve accepted it, and now you’re part of the family of God!
From this point on we’re never alone. God promises us, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 12:5).
What encouragement and assurance! Regardless of our location, our condition, our health, or our situation, God is with us. In fact, the Holy Spirit indwells us. I’ve always been thrilled with this verse: “I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38, 39).
Your new position in Christ also means that He will guide you all through life—no matter what. As you read God’s Word each day, pray to Him and devote each 24-hour period to Him, He will cause you to live a fulfilling life that is rich and honoring to Him. Listen to these encouraging verses:
“Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).
“Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart” (Psalm 27:14).
“Cast your burdens on the Lord, and He shall sustain you” (Psalm 55:22).
“Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6).
Make mistakes? Yes, we all make them, but God is there to forgive and to lead. Proverbs 3:5-6 assures us, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” So often in life we can’t tell the beginning from the end, nor can we figure out just what’s happening, but God understands all things and He surely does direct our paths.
Friend, many volumes would be required to explain all that God does for us. But one of the most important is that He will lead us home to Heaven to be with Him. As His disciples watched Christ ascend to Heaven, He said to them, “I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am there you may be also” (John 14:2, 3). That takes you and me from the time of birth to the time of death when we are released to be in His holy presence forever. NOW THAT’S ENCOURAGEMENT!
As you walk through life, this tremendous encouragement that God gives you will enable you to encourage others!
 Continued on Page Five
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