Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “A life of service”
Our Bible verse for today: “An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.” Proverbs 12:25 (NIV
Our thought for today: “You can serve people by encouraging them.”
I’m reading a wonderful little book right now called “The Sender” It’s a story about when words make all the difference. It was written by Kevin Elko and although the story as told in the book is a work of fiction, it’s based on the true story of Chuck Pagano, the Head Coach of the Indianapolis Colts. In mid-life and in mid-career Chuck was suddenly diagnosed with an aggressive and deadly form of cancer. He then had to endure an extensive, debilitating, and prolonged regime of chemotherapy which ravaged his body.
One day, as he was enduring the treatments, and at one of the lowest points in his life, Chuck suddenly began receiving anonymous daily notes of encouragement and motivation designed to lift his spirits and to give him hope. Chuck said that not only did those letters encourage him at a time when he desperately needed it, but they gave him a whole new vision for life beyond the disease. Encouragement made such a big difference in his own life that Chuck decided to spend the rest of his life being an encourager of others.
Eventually it was learned that the author of the notes was Kevin Elko, a close friend of Chuck’s, and since the notes of encouragement had had such a dramatic and beneficial impact on Chuck, Kevin was encouraged to turn them into a book about the importance of encouraging one another. That then led to “The Sender”.
I personally believe that encouragement is one of the most important things we can do for each other. Life is hard, and we often find ourselves in deep valleys of disappointment and heartache. A kind word spoken at the right time is medicine for the soul. It can make all the difference to a struggling person.
As we’re considering the idea of living “a life of service” would you consider the possibility of your service being that of an encourager? You could be the person who sends the notes, makes the phone calls, gives the little gift, or offers a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on. A life spent as an encourager of others would be a live lived well – a life very well lived.
Encouragement is such an important act of service that we’re going to spend several days considering it. Tomorrow I want to share with you another powerful lesson from “The Sender”.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 