Encouragement Comes Full Circle
Photo image courtesy Pixabay
For I long to see you, that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to strengthen - that is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith, both yours and mine.
-- Romans 1:11-12 (ESV)
Have you ever felt encouraged by a friend or someone from your church? Over the years, and even now, I’ve had friends who lifted me up when discouragement tried to face plant me into my pillow in tears. God gave each one just what I needed to hear to help me keep going when I felt like everything I did seemed destined to fail, whether in life or ministry. I have a prayer team, my shield bearers covering me with their prayers to block the enemy while encouraging me to continue serving God through writing.
Occasionally, I will find a random message on my smartphone or an email from someone who tells me how God is speaking through something I’ve written, when I’ve received numerous rejections for articles or book ideas. Encouraged, I can then see God move. When we encourage someone, they encourage us too. It’s a beautiful cycle of mutual support and building each other up. Encouragement comes full circle.
In our passage, the apostle Paul wrote to the Roman church that he wanted to see them, but unfortunately, he couldn’t get there in person. He wanted to encourage them in faith and word to strengthen their Christian faith. The Roman church was newer in the heart of the Roman world. Many Jewish Christians (Jews who accepted Jesus as their Messiah) felt compelled to keep the Law of Moses in their faith practice, expecting all believers to do the same, which Paul refers to. He wanted to see the believers in Rome badly, but something hindered him from coming. So, Paul wrote this letter to the Roman church because he couldn’t be there and wanted to encourage them by giving them the foundational truths of the Christian faith. But Paul also hoped for something from them: encouragement.
Who encourages you in your faith? Who do you encourage in theirs? Just as Paul encouraged others, they encouraged him as well. We can follow his example by visiting, calling, texting, or simply making a true positive comment on social media for someone who needs that hug from Jesus, or light to shine the way forward when they would rather pull the covers over their heads and say, “Forget this!” Let encouragement come full circle.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Who encouraged you recently and how?
2. Who can you reach out to encourage this week?
