1. Encouragement goes straight to the heart.In fact, the word itself comes from a combination of the prefix “en” which means “to put into” and the Latin word “cor” which means heart.
   • Knowing what a big difference encouragement makes in your own life, what can you do to help others “to take heart” when the going gets tough and way feels long?
2. Become aware of what encourages you, and do those same things for others.
3. Learn individuals’ “love language”-the special way in which they feel most valued. In his book, The Five Languages of Love, Gary Chapman explains that not everyone’s emotional needs are met in the same way, and that it’s important to learn to speak others’ love language. The five love languages are: words of affirmation, spending quality time, receiving gifts, acts of service and physical touch.
4. If an encouraging thought comes to mind, share it! It may not have the same effect if you wait. Don’t let shyness hold you back. Instead, form a new habit: “Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today…” (Hebrews 3:13).
5. When you introduce someone, add a few words of praise for the person’s abilities, accomplishments, about how they’ve helped you or about the nature of your relationship. It’s encouraging to be praised in front of others.*
6. When someone is discouraged or hurting, offer specific, practical help. If you ask, “How can I help?” the person might be at a loss to answer. It’s better to ask, “Would it help if I…(specific action) or say, “I would like to…(specific action)?*
7. Remind fellow Christians of the specific promises of God and characteristics of God. We may know something with our mind, but need to be reminded in our heart. The Apostle Peter wrote, “I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have” (2 Peter 1:12).
8. Write someone a note to tell them that you’re praying for them. Tell them what you’re praying. You can pray specific Scriptures for individuals such as Romans 15:13, “[I pray that] the God of hope [will] fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
9. Make celebration a more regular part of your relationships. Celebrate others’ victories, large and small-with a note, with coffee together, with a special meal, a congratulatory phone call or just a high-five!
10. Be specific when you offer words of praise; it makes your encouragement more credible and concrete “You did a great job at…” “I really appreciate that you…” “I was really impressed that you…”
11. Encourage other believers with a reminder of Christ’s coming. It redirects our thinking to an eternal perspective and ultimate deliverance from the sin and death. “We who are still alive and are left will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words” (1 Thessalonians 5:17b-18).
12. Realize the power of presence. Just being there is encouraging! When you’re with others, you’re telling them that they’re important. The Apostle Paul closed his letter to the church at Colosse promising to send his friend Tychius “that he may encourage your hearts” (Colossians 4:8b).
13. If you’re part of a church, Bible study or fellowship, be committed to showing up. Your simple presence encourages others that they are part of a community of faith and that they are not alone. That’s why the writer of Hebrews says, “Let us not give up the habit of meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-and all the more as we see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:25).
14. If someone you know is working on a large project, send her a single flower to encourage her at the beginning of the project, and a full bouquet when it’s done.*
15. Use encouragement as an outreach. If anyone should be known for being an encourager, it should be the Christian. Write a letter of appreciation to people at work, your apartment manager, your child’s teacher or your doctor. Often when we interact with these people, we are asking for their services. Take time just to say thank you!*
16. If you really want to encourage someone who gives you excellent service, write a letter of commendation to the person’s boss.*
17. We could learn something from the way team athletes freely pat, touch and high-five each other in competition. Touch is a powerful encouragement. Be sure to be sensitive in this area, though. Ask someone if you can hug her first. And be careful to be above reproach with persons of the opposite sex.
18. When you see someone making positive changes in their lives, affirm them. “You seem to have a really great attitude about…” “It may be that I’m just starting to take notice, but I see that you’re…” “Do you think that you are becoming more…?”
19. Tell people how they’ve encouraged you!

* Asterisked tips adapted from the book, 52 Simple Ways to Encourage Others, by C.E. Rollins, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN, 1995.

One of the most sobering messages I find in all the words of God is this terrible warning found in the book of Ezekiel. God commanded Ezekiel to warn the people of Israel to turn from their sins. Some would argue that this has no application for the Christian. I would disagree. In principle this is exactly what our Lord commands us to do – to go and make disciples of all nations, to preach the gospel to all men, to follow Jesus and He will make us to become fishers of men.

It is a sobering thing to realize that all around us there are multitudes of men and women, even loved ones, who do not know the Savior. Many of them have never received an intelligent, Spirit-filled, loving witness concerning our Savior. Who will tell them? There are some people whom you and I can reach whom nobody else can influence.

I am writing this day’s devotion while in Amsterdam where I am speaking at an international gathering of Christian evangelists. During the course of my days here I have talked with many taxi drivers, maids, waiters and other employees of the hotel. Only one professed to be a believer and we had good fellowship together. Some were openly defiant, even angry at the name of Jesus. But in each case I have shared the gospel, constrained by the love of Christ out of a deep sense of gratitude for all that He has done for me, and as an act of obedience to His command to be His witness.

I pray that God will give me a greater sense of urgency to warn men that unless they turn to Christ they will die in their sins. I do not want to be responsible because I failed to warn them. They must know that there is a heaven and a hell and that there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved but the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Bible Reading: Ezekiel 3:15-21

Today’s Action Point:
I will ask the Holy Spirit to quicken within my heart, out of a deep sense of gratitude for all He has done for me and from a desire to obey our Lord’s commands, a greater sense of urgency to be His witness and to warn men to turn from their wicked ways and receive Christ, the gift of God’s love.

Related Links:

Learn how to witness with the Four Spiritual Laws booklet:

http://www.retirementwithapurpose.com/howtosharefourlaws.html

About the Author
This article was written by Bill Bright. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/bill-bright/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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Tom and Marti were newlyweds. They were just getting started in business and had all the expense of setting up housekeeping. So they found their budget severely strained. In fact, the bills were piling up. Then they were challenged to tithe their gross income. Their first response was, “Impossible! We can’t even pay our present bills, let alone take 10 percent off the top.”

As they prayed together, however, they felt definitely led that this was God’s will. Since they wanted to please Him by obeying His command, they began systematically and faithfully to give priority to their tithe. At first, it was nip and tuck, and some of the other obligations had to wait. But after a few months they were amazed to see how they were able to accomplish more with the nine-tenths than they had previously been able to accomplish with the total amount.

Now they are enthusiastic over the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven, seeking first the kingdom of God. Tithing was only the beginning. Now they are giving 40 percent off the top because God has prospered them so abundantly.

I began to tithe as a new Christian when I was made aware of the scriptural principle that everything belongs to God and we are only stewards during our brief time here on earth. Actually a tithe is the Old Testament concept and according to the New Testament concept every believer has the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven far beyond the amount of the tithe. There is a law of sowing and reaping: The more you sow, the more you reap.

To the Christian, it is not how much we give to God; it is how much we have left after we have given to Him – and to His kingdom.

Bible Reading: Malachi 3:5-9

Today’s Action Point:
Today I will take inventory of my giving to the Lord. I will begin at least to tithe, expecting that God, as He promised Malachi, “will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing so great that I won’t have room enough to take it in.

About the Author
This article was written by Bill Bright. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/bill-bright/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
http://www.truthmedia.com/contact/index.html

Tom and Marti were newlyweds. They were just getting started in business and had all the expense of setting up housekeeping. So they found their budget severely strained. In fact, the bills were piling up. Then they were challenged to tithe their gross income. Their first response was, “Impossible! We can’t even pay our present bills, let alone take 10 percent off the top.”

As they prayed together, however, they felt definitely led that this was God’s will. Since they wanted to please Him by obeying His command, they began systematically and faithfully to give priority to their tithe. At first, it was nip and tuck, and some of the other obligations had to wait. But after a few months they were amazed to see how they were able to accomplish more with the nine-tenths than they had previously been able to accomplish with the total amount.

Now they are enthusiastic over the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven, seeking first the kingdom of God. Tithing was only the beginning. Now they are giving 40 percent off the top because God has prospered them so abundantly.

I began to tithe as a new Christian when I was made aware of the scriptural principle that everything belongs to God and we are only stewards during our brief time here on earth. Actually a tithe is the Old Testament concept and according to the New Testament concept every believer has the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven far beyond the amount of the tithe. There is a law of sowing and reaping: The more you sow, the more you reap.

To the Christian, it is not how much we give to God; it is how much we have left after we have given to Him – and to His kingdom.

About the Author
This article was written by Bill Bright. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/bill-bright/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
http://www.truthmedia.com/contact/index.html

Tom and Marti were newlyweds. They were just getting started in business and had all the expense of setting up housekeeping. So they found their budget severely strained. In fact, the bills were piling up. Then they were challenged to tithe their gross income. Their first response was, “Impossible! We can’t even pay our present bills, let alone take 10 percent off the top.”

As they prayed together, however, they felt definitely led that this was God’s will. Since they wanted to please Him by obeying His command, they began systematically and faithfully to give priority to their tithe. At first, it was nip and tuck, and some of the other obligations had to wait. But after a few months they were amazed to see how they were able to accomplish more with the nine – tenths than they had previously been able to accomplish with the total amount.

Now they are enthusiastic over the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven, seeking first the kingdom of God. Tithing was only the beginning. Now they are giving 40 percent off the top because God has prospered them so abundantly.

I began to tithe as a new Christian when I was made aware of the scriptural principle that everything belongs to God and we are only stewards during our brief time here on earth. Actually a tithe is the Old Testament concept and according to the New Testament concept every believer has the privilege of laying up treasures in heaven far beyond the amount of the tithe. There is a law of sowing and reaping: The more you sow, the more you reap.

To the Christian, it is not how much we give to God; it is how much we have left after we have given to Him – and to His kingdom.

Bible Reading: (Malachi 3:5 – 9)

Today’s Action Point: Today I will take inventory of my giving to the Lord. I will begin at least to tithe, expecting that God, as He promised Malachi, “will open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing so great that I won’t have room enough to take it in.

About the Author
This article was written by Bill Bright. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/bill-bright/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
http://www.truthmedia.com/contact/index.html

We learned yesterday that genuine repentance of sin includes: agreeing with the Lord that our behavior or thought pattern is ungodly; establishing in our thinking that this sinful habit is displeasing to God; identifying – with the Spirit’s help – what would please Him; and taking steps under the Spirit’s power to turn from sin and walk in godliness. Whether we are nonbelievers starting to come to faith in Jesus or believers wrestling with sin, we all need to practice biblical repentance.

Three key words describe the process of repentance: recognition, agreement and commitment. Unless we recognize that our behavior or thoughts are sin, we will not see any need to confess them to God.

Recognition comes as we study God’s Word and learn what He identifies as sin. We must then agree that God’s pattern for life is correct and ours is wrong. The epistles to the Ephesians and Galatians are both helpful in revealing what pleases and displeases God.

Without agreement, our confession would be more of an “I am sorry about the consequences” statement.

Commitment is also necessary. Isaiah proclaimed, “Because the Sovereign LORD helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore have I set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame” (Isaiah 50:7 NIV). We must commit ourselves to turning away from sin and choosing God’s way.

We who belong to Jesus can change permanently. Remember Christ promises that those He sets free will be free indeed (John 8:36).

Related Links:

Check out our Featured Author Section:

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About the Author
This article was written by Charles Stanley. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/charles-stanley/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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“This time I mean it!” After halfheartedly correcting their sons and daughters several times, parents often react with these words. Children can distinguish the underlying meaning and intuitively know when Mom or Dad is ready to take action.

In a similar way, our confession of sin to the Lord can be halfhearted. When convicted by the Holy Spirit, we will often tell God how sorry we are. If we have to tell Him several times, we might add that this time we really mean it. But, because we have not sincerely repented, our sin continues unabated. The Lord does not consider such a confession to be genuine repentance.

Biblical repentance starts by agreeing with God that what He calls sin in our lives is sin and should be removed. When we see the ugliness of our iniquity as God does, we will experience godly sorrow. Repentance reflects a change of heart that results in action – an adjustment of direction or behavior. Once we understand that our wrongdoing distresses our Father, we will be compelled to turn our backs on that sin, walk away from it through the power of the Holy Spirit and replace it with God-pleasing ways.

Does this mean that Satan is going to leave us alone? Not at all. Temptations to sin will still be present. So, if we fail, we are to genuinely repent again – in other words, we are to agree with God, set our mind to reflect His viewpoint and draw on the Holy Spirit’s power to walk away from the sin. He’s the one who can give us the victory!

Related Links:

How You Can Experience God’s Love and Forgiveness:

http://www.retirementwithapurpose.com/tcloveforgiveness1.html

About the Author
This article was written by Charles Stanley. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/charles-stanley/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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None of us wants to miss the blessings the Lord has planned for us. If asked, we would say we want to receive every one of the gifts He desires to give us. However, because of the choices we make, we often give up blessings. Israel wandered in the desert for 40 years because they chose not to enter the Promised Land. Though the Israelites were on the brink of tremendous blessing, the leaders forfeited the outpouring of God’s goodness, not only for themselves but for the whole nation. (Numbers 13-14)

The Christian life is one of surrender and obedience, not independence and rebellion. To live such a life means we must bring our choices to the Lord and then be prepared to accept His answers. Remember, His way is always best because it comes out of the goodness of His character. To choose God’s best also requires learning how to listen to Him. Too many times we present our requests and leave before giving God time to answer us.

Part of listening is expecting God to speak from His Spirit to ours. Though not audible, His communication can seem even louder than a voice. It seems obvious that we should remember to do what He says; however, if we do not write it down, most of us will forget. Keeping our focus on the Lord is also important – it takes practice to keep our eyes on His plan when circumstances clamor for our attention.

Having God’s best starts with seeking God’s way. What do you need to be talking over with Him?

Related Links:

When We’ve Messed Up:

http://www.retirementwithapurpose.com/hglmessedup.html

About the Author
This article was written by Charles Stanley. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/charles-stanley/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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A compass is a useful directional tool, which is designed always to point toward the North Pole. Using it, travelers can determine whether they are moving due north or in another direction.

In the kingdom of God, the Bible is the compass and it always points one way – toward God Himself. To walk ?due north? is to follow the path of righteousness. Let?s consult our compass, using (Proverbs 3) to receive practical guidance for daily living.

The first step in using a compass is to look at it. Daily study of the Scriptures will keep us headed in the right direction. Following biblical principles allows us to weather difficult storms and still remain on course. God promises to prosper those who keep His commands. (verses 1 – 2)

Second, the truth of God?s Word is to be our only standard for living. In particular, relationships with others are to be marked by lovingkindness. Our reward will be divine favor and a good reputation in the sight of both God and man. (verses 3 – 4)

Third, our compass tells us to trust God wholeheartedly, even when circumstances perplex us and our choices are distasteful. We are to let go of human reasoning and put the Lord and His ways first. (verse 5)

Fourth, the Bible can shed light on any situation we face, whether it has to do with finances, concerns, relationships, or work.

Trusting God and getting answers from Him rather than from the world will bring blessing. (verse 6) As Christians, we want to keep moving ?due north.? Is that the direction you are taking?

About the Author
This article was written by Charles Stanley. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/charles-stanley/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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When we recognize God’s presence with us, courage starts to develop in us. It grows as we draw on His strength.

Without God’s enabling power, hardship and stress will drain us emotionally and hurt us physically. Such depletion leaves us spiritually vulnerable to Satan’s attacks. After 40 years of wandering, the nation of Israel was in such a state. They should have believed the two spies who trusted in the Lord’s presence and power to help them. Instead, however, they allowed their weakness to sway them, and they sided with the remaining ten spies, who claimed the Canaanite obstacles were too great (Numbers 13:26 – 32)

In contrast, Paul faced the Roman tribunal after enduring great hardship but was not dismayed because God stood with him and strengthened him. In fact, Paul discovered that the Lord’s power in his life reached its peak when he was at his lowest point. (2 Corinthians 12:9 – 10) Times of helplessness and weakness are in reality opportunities to receive an abundance of divine power. (Philippians 4:13)

Being yielded to God’s purposes is the final element in developing courage. Paul knew God had a plan for every event in his life – even the hardest ones. He stayed committed to the assignments God had given him.

Instead of seeking a way out of trials, accept God’s way as Paul did, and you’ll find courage welling up from within. Imagine yourself standing next to God, drawing on His strength, and fulfilling His desires. That is a picture of courage.

About the Author
This article was written by Charles Stanley. You can read more about this author by clicking this link:
http://www.talk.thelife.com/charles-stanley/

This devotional is protected by copyright laws and may not be reprinted or posted to a site without permission from TruthMedia Internet Group. All readers are welcome to forward the devotional to a friend or link to it. If you would like to seek permission to reprint the devotional in full, please contact us:
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