Encourage One Another
In I Thessalonians 5:11 we read, “Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up, just in fact you are doing.” In the context we will see that the believers were to encourage one another even when they thought the Lord would return very soon – even in their lifetime. They were to remind each other that they were “children of the light and children of the day.” (5:4) Therefore, they were to be “alert and self controlled.”(vs.6)
Encouragement is a very important part of meeting together. Through it we remember that whatever our situation we are not alone, the Lord knows and cares. Likewise we are comforted that others in our fellowship know and care about our trials and challenges. And encouragement can give us the faith to walk as “children of the light.” Paul exhorted Christians to make decisions that reflect who they were in Christ. What encouragement do we give one another today in our small groups? Often we are tempted to encourage others to do what we know they want to do instead of what the Lord would will for them. In gentleness and compassion we are to encourage others to follow the Lord, to take the sometimes harder road and to act as children of the light. This is true encouragement. Because encouragement implies that someone needs courage. Courage to do the faithful action; courage to go against the pressures of peers and societal norms; courage to even stand alone in circumstances, knowing that they have a group of Christian friends that stand with them. Let us not shy away from encouraging one another. By it, the Lord strengthens our faith and the faith in our small group.
Rosie Kwak
Interim Director of Caring Ministries
