Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Think of a time when someone said something that made you feel encouraged. Can you actually think of a time when something someone said to you literally had a direct impact on your life? Think of one that affected you positively and one that affected you negatively. How did those words make you feel in each situation?
While thinking about this I also thought about times that I have impacted others with my words. I honestly wish I could take back some of those things…the one’s that hurt someone….but I can’t. We have to power to build up or to tear down with words that we say. That’s a LOT of power! It’s not always easy to be encouraging, especially when someone isn’t deserving. But, we are very undeserving of God’s love yet He continues to show us mercy, despite all of our faults.
Encouraging someone at random is a great thing, however, the Bible says to build others up ‘according to their needs’. We should listen to those around us and be sensitive to their needs (it’s not always about us!). We might not be feeling the need to encourage but it is not really up to us…God said to 
So try to look for opportunities to say encouraging things to others. You never know what an impact you can have on someone’s life!
February 5th, 2011 at 9:30 pm
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February 15th, 2011 at 10:58 pm
Ouch! This really hits home. It is hard to be encouraging to someone else when you desperately need it for yourself. But I know I need to work on this. Thanks for the reminder.