1 Thessalonians 5:11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Yesterday as I was walking through Kroger to get a few things for my sister in laws birthday, a gentleman stopped me to share a few words of encouragement with me. I was shocked. All I could think at first was, how did he know I needed to hear those words? How did he know I needed those exact words of encouragement to keep going another day? How did he know that I was feeling tired and out of sorts and needed. . .God. That is how he knew. God knew. God sent me a sweet word of encouragement through a total stranger.

Has that ever happened to you? Have you received a word from a total stranger that encouraged you and turned your day around? Or have you been led to speak words of encouragement to someone you did not know? It is such an amazing gift, no matter what side you are on, the giver or the receiver. Proverbs 16:24 says, “Kind words are like honey – Sweet to the soul and healthy for the body.” An encouraging word offered at the right moment can be the difference between a good day and a bad day, between finishing the race and collapsing, or even between life and death.

1 Thessalonians 5:11 says, “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” It can not get any clearer than that. We are called to encourage one another. We are called to build each other up. We are the hands and feet of Jesus here on Earth and when you feel that nudge to speak words of encouragement to someone…anyone…do it. The words will be sweet to their soul and your soul.

Lord, thank you for encouraging words. Help me to be sensitive to others needs and give me the courage to speak encouraging words to those whom you place my path. Amen.