Greetings in the name of Jesus our Lord.  One of our members had a significant birthday yesterday, so several of her family from North Dakota are among us today.  My first 12 years of ministry were spent in that seemingly inconsequential state.  Yet it is an outstanding place to live and raise a family.  North Dakota has a good standard of living, the highest high school graduation rate in the nation, and its greatest exports are its people.

          The skiing isn't much and the winters can be brutal, but most "Nodaks" don't mind that because it keeps the English and Swedes out.  And the food you find there is fascinating!  German-Russians provide knipfla, kuechla, kuchen, and strudel, while the Norwegians still make crumkaka, lefsa, ludafisk, and Swedish meatballs (for those who pass on ludafisk).  It's a land of waving grain and the prairie rose - a place I still hold dear.

          We're approaching the end of the church year, so the Bible lessons for today point to the End Times.  This is actually good timing for such lessons.  After last Tuesday's elections, some Americans feel paradise is just around the corner, while others doubtlessly feel it's the end of the world.  But however you feel about that, we could all use some encouragement.  I have a feeling euphoria will soon give way to reality, so I want us all to consider for a few minutes St. Paul's admonition to ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER.

          He once told the Thessalonians, "Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."  But just how do you do that?  To encourage means to inspire someone in spirit or confidence, to stimulate that person by helping them or by showing approval for what they do.  There is so much today that can drag us down that we all need all the encouragement we can get.

          Have you ever had the experience of being somewhere and your car won't start?  Everything else in the car works fine but one small thing - the battery - has no more "juice".  Sometimes that means a new battery or alternator, but the short term solution is usually to get a "jump."  Another car comes alongside and someone hooks up a set of jumper cables so your dead battery can draw power their stronger one.  Then when your car is running again, away you can drive.

          That act of drawing alongside or lending energy to get another person going is the basic idea behind encouragement.  There is a man in the New Testament who had a particular reputation for encouragement.  His parents named him Joseph, but the leaders of the early church called him Barnabas, which literally meant "son of encouragement".

          Barnabas was a person you felt good being around.  He was a man who believed in the potential of people, particularly those whom others were cautious or suspicious of.

          Most notably, Barnabas was willing to give a young man named John Mark a second chance, even when the Apostle Paul wouldn't.  And because Barnabas did give John Mark a second chance, future Christians all over the world were to be blessed.  Since that time countless people have come to know the Lord through the book which we all know as the Gospel according to St. Mark.

          There are times when all of us will have our batteries go weak or dead.  Encouragement happens when someone else comes along side and infuses us with new courage or a different perspective or a better attitude that helps us get up and get going again.  There are many things in life that cause us to experience discouragement, which is simply the draining of our courage.

          Sometimes it's a crisis that damages us or cutting words that put cracks in our battery.  Sometimes we're tired or sick or worn out because we left the lights on and our battery has been drained.  To be encouraged means to be re-charged.  Where life has dissipated our strength, encouragement replenishes of what it takes to keep going.  Encouragement is putting back what has been taken out of us or what has leaked out by the trials of life.

          Some of you know I play the piano, though nothing to write home about.  I read notes only when necessary and play mostly by memory.  I took two years of lessons in Junior high because Mom wanted me to and a year in college because the school said I had to.  For several years I didn't play at all until I met my father-in-law who played for the old folks at the Vets Hospital in Ft. Wayne.  He wasn't very good, but he enjoyed it and could play most any tune passably enough so the old folks enjoyed hearing him.  One day he couldn't go and asked if I'd sub for him.  "Just keep playing, no matter what," he said.  "People won't mind your mistakes if you just keep playing."

          Well, I played for the chapel that day and was I terrible!  Those old guys winced as I hacked away at hymns with some horrible chords.  We all couldn't wait till chapel was over.  But a few years later I tried it again at another retirement home and have never quit since.  No matter how many mistakes, I just keep on playing.  For most of the years of my ministry I've played for old folks, children, retreats and sometimes even for worship when there was no one else.  I just make sure I'm not asked to play something I don't know.  My father-in-law probably never knew what his encouragement meant these past years.

          You see, it's not the lack of mistakes that make a person, but the willingness to be forgiven.  It's not how good we are, but how good God is.  Every day God sees us do foolish things, and hears us say outrageous things.  Sometimes we're just plain evil.  God doesn't overlook our sins, but He forgives them, and it's good He does.  Jesus looks past the sour chords and the flat notes, and loves us in spite of how badly we sound.

          The Good News today is that despite our prideful attitudes, our stubborn ways or our embarrassing behavior, God still loves us.  He doesn't see failures - He sees people to forgive.  Like a parent, the Father loves what He sees, despite our shortfalls.  The Son Jesus went to the cross of Calvary to earn us a place in heaven.  The Holy Spirit works faith in our hearts to accept what Jesus has done so we can be forgiven.

          A teacher may see a girl with a bad attitude, but a mother sees someone who needs a lot of love.  A coach may see a player who lost the game, but a father sees a boy he'd give his life for.  In an even greater way, God sees a human race that ought to be punished, but instead He rescues it.  And because we're precious to Him, He wants us to encourage one another.  Here are three suggestions how we can do that:

          1.  Allow people to grow.  Consider the relationship Barnabas had with a new young preacher he met.  In the early days of this man's ministry it was Barnabas who was mentored him.  Other Christian leaders were suspicious of this man, but Barnabas took him under his wing and encouraged him.  It was Barnabas who launched this young preacher into ministry in Antioch.  It was Barnabas who coached him how to share his faith.  And soon Barnabas and a young man named Paul became a missionary team.  And he Bible first referred to them as "Barnabas and Paul" because Barnabas was the leader and Paul was the apprentice.  But eventually the book of Acts speaks of "Paul and Barnabas".  At some point Barnabas let Paul assume the leadership role.  The mentor became number two.  Barnabas allowed Paul to grow.  That's what encouragers do.

          2.  Affirm the abilities you see in others.  Consider Moses.  He didn't want to lead the Israelites.  He told God he was afraid, but God said he'd give him courage.  He told God no one would listen to him, but God said He would be with him.  He told God he couldn't speak well, but God said Aaron would speak for him.  He told God no one would believe him, but God gave him a staff that could do miracles.  Moses told God to please send someone else, but God finally lost His patience and said, "Get going, Moses - or else!"  And Moses did get going because God saw great abilities in him.  Encouragers tell others they can be great, and then they show them how to do it.

          3.  Point out opportunities, not problems.  In The Hiding Place, Corrie ten Boom told of the horrible conditions in the barracks at Ravensbruck concentration camp.  The dirt and filth and stench were horrific beyond imagination.  One day during their prayer time, Corrie heard her sister Betsy pray, "Lord, thank you for all the fleas!"  That was too much!  Corrie stopped her sister right in the middle of her prayer and asked why she'd said that.  Betsy explained, "Don't you see?  The Lord provided these fleas.  They're so bad in here the guards won't come in and bother us.  So now we can pray and sing as much as we wish".  Anybody can point out problems, but an encourager points to opportunities.

          Allow people to grow, affirm their abilities and point out opportunities, not problems - three ways to be an encourager.  And never underestimate your encouragement on others.  As a high school student I was often asked to sing for groups, and one evening I was griping to Mrs. Owens, my accompanist, that it was a bother to sing in public.  Right then and there she scolded me.  "God gave you a good voice, young man, and you should use it proudly."  I never forgot her words that night.  Twenty years later at my Uncle's funeral, I asked if she remembered telling me that.  "Oh, I told that to everybody," she said with a slight smile.  You see, she was an encourager.  It wasn't that I was so great, but that she wanted everyone to make music.

          "Encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."  So keep singing, and no matter how many mistakes you make, don't stop playing.  Amen

Copyright © 2002 by Pastor Bob Tasler.  All rights reserved.