$11.1 Billion Dollars

That is how much the self-improvement market was worth in 2011. Whether it is through books, infomercials, motivational speakers, personal coaching, or seminars, people are yearning to improve themselves, their situations and their futures, and they are willing to listen to anyone who will tell them how to do it.

They want to improve, so they are ripe for encouragement.  They love a good success story because they think, “If they can do it, I can too.  Wrap it up into a good three-step plan, and you’ve got me hooked.  Slap the word “guaranteed” on there, and that’s even better. Encourage me!  Tell me I can do it!”

Remember this gal?

Everyone wants a “Rosie” on their side. Everyone needs a cheerleader. Everyone longs for a pep rally before they face the day. “Encourage me!” they say.

• Encourage me to raise my children right
• Encourage me to lose weight and keep it off
• Encourage me to invest wisely
• Encourage me to make my home look like a model home
• Encourage me to climb the ladder of success in my career
• Encourage me to grow closer to God

Is this phenomenon of longing for encouragement new?  Or are people just finally realizing how they can monopolize on it? Consider this popular verse in Hebrews:

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25

The need for encouragement is not new.  God knew that we would need encouragement.  He knew how important it would be for us to be spurred on, to have cheerleaders, to have guidance, to have motivation.

Of course, there are two ways that we can look at this world-wide need for encouragement.  We can either chant along with all the others: “Encourage me! Encourage me! Encourage me!”  Or, we can change the punctuation a bit and in turn, change our focus:  “Encourage.  Me?”

Yes, YOU!  After all, do we, as Christians, want to be the ones getting our encouragement from others, or do we want to be the ones doing the encouraging?  And if it’s our job to be encouragers, what does that look like?

All we have to do is look back to Hebrews 24-25 (above) for a simple guideline on how to encourage others. Biblical encouragement is:

1. Intentional: “And let us consider…” Encouragement is intentional. It does not just happen on its own. It takes planning, forethought, thinking, and follow through. If you want to be an encourager, spend time considering how you can do it most effectively.
2. Interactive: “…how we may spur one another on…” Biblical encouragement is not one-sided. It is mutual between believers, with each encouraging the other depending upon time, situation and gifting.
3. In person: “..Let us not give up meeting together…” In today’s digital world, it is very easy to forget this important factor in encouragement. But the truth is that blogs, email, texts and note cards are not enough. They’re good, but they do not replace regular, face-to-face encouragement that you need and receive by attending church, small groups, or lunch dates with your girls.
4. Increasing:  “and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”   Never assume that someone has had enough encouragement. You can always give more, and you can always benefit from more. As the world continues to drift farther and farther away from God, we need to continue to encourage our fellow believers not to give up in doing God’s work.

So how do you take that panoramic picture of what biblical encouragement looks like and translate that into everyday actions? Glad you asked! Join me again on Thursday for some practical tips on how to be an encouragement to all those around you! Come on! I know you can do it!!

Q: How do you feel when someone encourages you? How much do you need encouragement from others to help you through life?