1 Thessalonians 5:11

[11] Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you also are doing.   (NASB)

[11] So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. (NLT)

[11] So support one another. Keep building each other up as you have been doing. (VOICE)

How do we encourage each other? Start by asking the question – how do you like to be encouraged? It’s a foundational question. For me, I’m encouraged by kind words. Share with me a motivational word and it’ll get my energy going. It’ll be either the clichéd phrases that will get me to roll my eyes and get me moving or a legitimate emotional boost to get going.  It could be a gift like coffee or a snack. It could be a good song to lift my spirits. It could be a hug. There are many ways to encourage one another, and right now, we need it. Too many people are losing their will to live and losing their life because they feel so discouraged and hopeless in this world. We need to start looking after one another, trying to be there for people whenever and however we can. God did not create us to do life alone.

How do we build one another up? How do we continue to encourage and motivate each other? We must try to understand. Understand who one is. Understand what they want to do in life. Understand what works for them and what doesn’t. The more we look to understand how God created us to, the better we can learn how to create a world that is accessible to one another. We should hinder one’s calling through, regardless of how different it looks from ours and how we understand the world. The goal is to make the world harmonious. It’s a way to allow God’s creation and God to live in a way to fulfill His mission and to allow his creation to be harmony with each other, united under their almighty creator.

Next slice of manna: Manna for the Mind #223