The Greatest Encourager

My mother passed away in February. Some days are harder than others, but the greatest thing I remember about her is that she always inspired me to be a better person. Even in her illness later in life, her presence kept my heart tender. I never want to lose her vision of something greater for my life. I never want to lose the tenderness she inspired in me.

Do you have someone who inspires you or encourages you? Perhaps you haven't known that kind of inspiration in a long time. Perhaps you wonder if days of failure and despair will ever end. If you know Christ, you have the greatest encourager of all. He looks beyond who we are, where we are, what we are, and sees us through the eyes of His loving sacrifice. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8, NKJV). He doesn't see our failure, and our sin. He died for you and for me. His sacrifice frees us to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:1-4). He sees our greatest potential, and He wants to inspire us to find it.

You are not a failure. You have the greatest encourager cheering for you. Don't hide from failure. Face it, and honestly evaluate why you failed. If it is from sin, repent, and let Christ forgive you. Move on in forgiveness. Learn from your failure, but don't allow that failure to define who you are. If the failure is the result of circumstances beyond your control, then it is not yours. Don't carry a burden you were never meant to carry. Whatever you face, Christ encourages you to learn from it, and grow closer to Him as a result of it.

Jesus Christ always convicts. Satan always condemns. There is hope in conviction. There is no hope in condemnation. There is encouragement in conviction, because there is the promise for something always better in your life. If you are willing to respond to that conviction with repentance, your promise is secured. Your encourager has encouraged you to become something greater than you ever imagined.

Always look to Jesus Christ, the author and the finisher of your faith. He will encourage you through all you face in life. He will never fail you. He will never desert you. He will lead you to be the greatest. Your potential will become His promise. “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6, NIV).