One doesn’t have to look far in today’s world to find someone who is discouraged. Loneliness, depression, and the like are of epidemic proportions today.

In his book Live Not by Lies, Rod Dreher writes “Americans attend fewer club meetings, have fewer dinner parties, eat dinner together as a family less, and are much less connected to their neighbors. They are disconnected from political parties and more skeptical of institutions. They spend much more time alone watching television or cocooning on the internet. The result is that ordinary people feel more anxious, isolated, and vulnerable.”

Add to this what the world is experiencing with Covid 19 and the economy and you have a real quagmire full of depression and discouragement.

I wrote previously “Never assume you know another person’s situation or can understand what they are going through at any given moment.”

Think about this for a moment; does the fact that someone appears happy, joyful…appears to be okay, or doing good negate our responsibility to be an encourager? As you ponder that question consider a passage of scripture written by the Apostle Paul in Romans 15:1-2 “Now we who are strong have an obligation to bear the weakness of those without strength, and not to please ourselves. Each one of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.”

Here we have a biblical mandate to be an encourager to others. “Through the years I have said many times there is nothing that soothes one’s own soul like serving others.” I wonder, how might you use your strength, your possessions, your understanding of scripture to bring encouragement to someone else today?

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