ENCOURAGEMENT

HOW CAN WE GET ENCOURAGEMENT?

YHVH’S FAITHFULNESS IN THE PAST OFFERS ENCOURAGEMENT.
So honour YHVH and serve Him wholeheartedly. Put away forever the idols your ancestors worshiped when they lived beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt. Serve YHVH alone. -- Joshua 24:14. Joshua knew the nation’s weak spots. Before dying, he called the people together and gave commands to help them where they were most likely to slip:

1 -- follow all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses without turning aside;
2 -- don’t associate with the pagan nations or worship their gods;
3 -- don’t intermarry with the pagan nations.

These temptations were right in their backyard. Our associations and relationships can be temptations to us as well. It is wise to identify our weak spots before we break down. Then we can develop strategies to overcome these temptations instead of being overcome by them. Joshua knew his life was ending. So he called all the leaders of the nation together to give them his final words of encouragement and instruction. His whole message can be summarized in 23:8, -- Be faithful to YHVH your Elohim. -- Joshua had been a living example of those words and he wanted that to be his legacy. For what do you want to be remembered and what do you want to pass on to your children and associates? You can leave them nothing better than the admonition to hold on to YHVH and to the memory of a person who did.

WE CAN BE ENCOURAGED BY THE EXAMPLE OF OTHERS.
So we have been greatly comforted, dear brothers and sisters, in all of our own crushing troubles and suffering, because you have remained strong in your faith. -- 1 Thessalonians 3:7. During times of persecution or pressure, believers should encourage one another. Believers who stand firm in Elohim encourage both ministers and teachers -- who can see the benefit of their work in those who remain faithful -- and also those who are new in their faith -- who can learn from the steadfastness of the mature.

WE GAIN ENCOURAGEMENT BY THE WORDS OF OTHERS.
So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. -- 1 Thessalonians 5:11. As you near the end of a long race, your legs ache, your throat burns and your whole body cries out for you to stop. This is when friends and fans are most valuable. Their encouragement helps you push through the pain to the finish. In the same way, believers are to encourage one another. A word of encouragement offered at the right moment can be the difference between finishing well and collapsing along the way. Look around you. Be sensitive to others’ need for encouragement and be supportive with your words and actions.

REFLECTING ON OUR ETERNAL HOPE IN MOSHIACH OFFERS ENCOURAGEMENT.
So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for a while. -- 1 Peter 1:6. Do you need encouragement? Peter’s words offer joy and hope in times of trouble and he bases his confidence on what YHVH has done for us in Yeshua Moshiach. We’re called into a living hope of eternal life -- 1:3. Our hope is not only for the future: eternal life begins when we trust Moshiach and join YHVH’s family. No matter what pain or trial we face in this life, we know it is not our final experience. Eventually we will live with Moshiach forever.

HOW CAN WE BE ENCOURAGING?

CONSISTENTLY ENCOURAGE YOUNG BELIEVERS.
After preaching the Good News in Derbe and making many disciples, Paul and Barnabas returned again to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch of Pisidia, where they strengthened the believers. They encouraged them to continue in the faith, reminding them that they must enter into the Kingdom of YHVH through many tribulations. -- Acts 14:21-22. Paul and Barnabas returned to visit the believers in all the cities where they had recently been threatened and physically attacked. These men knew the dangers they faced, yet they believed that they had a responsibility to encourage the new believers. No matter how inconvenient or uncomfortable the task may seem, we must always support new believers who need our help and encouragement. It was not convenient or comfortable for Yeshua to go to the cross for us!

WE ARE ENCOURAGED THROUGH ENCOURAGING OTHERS.
For I long to visit you so I can share a spiritual blessing with you that will help you grow strong in Elohim. I’m eager to encourage you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours. In this way, each of us will be a blessing to the other. -- Romans 1:11-12. Paul prayed for the chance to visit these believers so that he could encourage them with his gift of faith and be encouraged by theirs. As YHVH’s missionary, he could help them understand the meaning of the Good News about Yeshua. As YHVH’s devoted people, they could offer him fellowship and comfort. When believers gather, everyone should give and receive. Our mutual faith gives us a common language and a common purpose for encouraging one another.

TAKE TIME TO BE WITH THOSE WHO SUFFER.
So comfort and encourage each other with these words. -- 1 Thessalonians 4:18. Because Yeshua Moshiach came back to life, so will all believers. All believers, including those living when Moshiach returns, will live with Moshiach forever. Therefore, we need not despair when loved ones die or world events take a tragic turn. YHVH will turn our tragedies to triumphs, our poverty to riches, our pain to glory and our defeat to victory. All believers throughout history will stand reunited in YHVH’s very presence, safe and secure. As Paul comforted the Thessalonians with the promise of the Resurrection, so we should comfort and reassure one another with this great hope.

WE SHOULD BE FAITHFUL IN PRAYING FOR OTHERS.
Timothy, I thank YHVH for you. He is the Elohim I serve with a clear conscience, just as my ancestors did. Night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. -- 2 Timothy 1:3. Paul constantly prayed for Timothy, his friend, his fellow traveller, his son in the faith and a strong leader in the believers community. Although the two men were separated from each other, their prayers provided a source of mutual encouragement. We too should pray consistently for others, especially for those who do YHVH’s work.