God, The Good Encourager

Introduction

Have you had seasons where you just been so discouraged? Like losing all movation, no slowly losing hope and borderly depressed.

Failure

Maybe you were aiming or desiring to achieve certain goals and you not only failed but your repeatly failing.

Comparison

Your maybe comparing your self or situation and you feel discourgaed and hopeless because you see you fall short.

Lack of progress

maybe your in a seson where you feel stuck and you feel like theres no way out and your feeling like your life isnt progressing.

unhelpful Criticism

Maybe consistently recieving not helpful criticism from family, friends or coworkers. Where you feel discouraged.

Lack of support

Its the same people who wont help or support you in situation. it leaves you feeling discouraged.

Burnout or Tired

Maybe in this season your so burnout or tired and how no physicla emotion or spiritual strenghth and its leading you to feel discouraged but you feel stuck or unmovitatived.

Fear

The most common ecxample we see in scripture for dicouragement is fear provebs saws how anxiety weighs the heart down but good word cheers it up. Fear produces in many of the people in scripture discouragemnt.

Transition

Through this we see with more clearity who our God and who is which is he is a Good encourager. Where currently in a series called imatation of God and to imatatie God we need to Know who God is. Over and over in the scriptures God is displayed as someone who encourages people in pain, distress, or are full of fear.

Lets define Encouragment.

Defination: Encouragement is someone who gives faith or confidenece that births courages. Lets Look at some examples of Gods encouragement.

God The Example

Genesis

The New International Version (Genesis 1:27–30)

So God created mankind in his own image,in the image of God he created them;male and female he created them.God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in

God after creating humanity he commisions them or gives him specific purpose to function.

The first thing you will notice when you carefull read the scriptres is how often God is mention in the ceatoring or sustianing or prodiving what people need for there purpose on earth. He isnt a a fur distance Gd but a active particpant of the every mission.

Exodus

The New International Version Exodus 3:7–12

The LORD said, “I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. And now the cry of the Israelites has reached me, and I have seen the way the Egyptians are oppressing them. So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt.”

But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?”

And God said, “I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.”

One of the things you will quickly notice in this passage when mose is commision is how often God say I heard I will do this i Will be with you.

Mose i cant, im not able.

someone once said to me both insecurity and pride have the same root thinking were self effecient.

Anouther thing you will see in mose is fear. I was listening to this pycologist and he said fear anxiety and depression are highly link to being super self concious. Your hyper aware of your body, your limitations, your past and it appears to keep us humble becuase it produces low self steem but it need to redirect our attention to How God says about himself and its not like he doenst know our limits, our failures and our weakeness but he isnt Confidenece in what you can do alone but what he can do through you.

Genesis

Anouther example of Gods encouragemnt is with hagar when sarah mistreast her because she became jealous of her and God sees here pain and injustice and he responds in this way.

The New International Version (Genesis 16:7–11)

The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?”“I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.Then the angel of the LORD told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.”

God makes a promise to her to comfort her and show her that no injustuce goes unseen but he draws near the broken hearted. He makes a promise to her that encourages her and gives her the strength to go back to sarah.

Transition

God does this was individuals like geden and even nations like isreal where he will encourage them by getting them to grow there confidenece in him and his promises. In the scriptures its not only God who encourages people but we see indivuuals who model encouragement.

Peoples Example

King hezekiah,

Isreal was being attacked by assyria and the people grew afriad and he encourages them with these words.

The New International Version 2 Chronicles 32:6–8

He appointed military officers over the people and assembled them before him in the square at the city gate and encouraged them with these words: “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said

What he simply did was remind the people in the a face of Danger and treat who God is and who is with them. King hezekiah emcouragement by simply giving them a reason to have faith in God and his charcter.

David & Jonathan

When david was running for his life under the treat of king saul, his friend whcih aslo was the son of king saul jonathan encourages David in his trouble.

The New International Version 1 Samuel 23:16–18

And Saul’s son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “My father Saul will not lay a hand on you. You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this.” The two of them made a covenant before the LORD. Then Jonathan went home, but David remained at Horesh.

Jonathan remind David of Gods protection and sauls limitation in the face of threat and he strenthen him in the Lord.

Transition

We aslo see in the new testament how the church is marked by encouragement.

The Churchs Example

When paul is writing to the church he reminds them how he encouragement them often towards lives of worthiness and calling.

The New International Version 1 Thessalonians 2:11–12

For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children, encouraging, comforting and urging you to live lives worthy of God, who calls you into his kingdom and glory

This isnt a stand alone text but its a mark of his ministry

Pauls Ministry was marked by encouragement

The New International Version Acts 16:40

After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house, where they met with the brothers and sisters and encouraged them. Then they left

Paul minsitry was marked by encouragemnt which simply giving people reasons for faith and confidnece in God that purdoced courage.

Hebrews 10:24–25 NIV

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

The church shoud be a place were we are encouraging one another in the faith becasue christianity isnt a race ran alone.

Transition

If our God is a Good encourager, how do we imataie him.

Application

Friendship

When your friend feels like giving up remind her shes not alone but God is near

Relationships

When your in a relationship somone feels unqualified remind them who qualifies them and our God is more then equipped to equip us.

Family

When your family is having fincial problems, remind them who has been providing and sustaining them all this time.

Church

When you havent seen someone coming to chruch, let us make it our resposnsiblity to check on them and encourage them in there faith.

If your serving with somone, encourage and clelebrate the Good you see in them as you call out what needs to improve.

Conclusion

our God is a good encourager, he gives faith and confidence that produces courage in the face of theart. Glory to him.