Wednesday, May 13, 2020
Be Encouraging
"If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging" (Romans 12:8 nlt).
Some people don't know how to pay compliments to others. They're always critical, always critiquing this or that. And when they do pay a compliment, it's more of the backhanded variety.
For instance, they'll say, "Hey! You're on time!" or "You look great for your age!" or "You're so pretty. Why are you still single?"
While there is no spiritual gift of criticism, there is the spiritual gift of exhortation, or encouraging others. The Bible says, "If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging" (Romans 12:8 nlt).
The word exhort relating to the spiritual gift of exhortation means to motivate, to stimulate, to excite, and when necessary, to correct. It's urging someone on.
Someone with the gift of teaching will tell you how to do something, but someone with the gift of exhortation motivates you to want to do it.
Some people are great with the details of Greek and Hebrew, historical background, and so forth. It's fantastic. Then others give messages that make you want to go and change the world. The church needs both gifts today. |
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