28 Feb Well or Well Done (Because people vastly underestimate what God can do through a lifetime of faithfulness) PART 6
Last week we began to dive into our key scripture for this series…
“His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant; thou has been faithful over a few things. I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou in the joy of the Lord.” (Matthew 25:21)
This is a fabulous scripture in context of truly being faithful with the gifts God has given us!
It should be the heart cry of every believer to hear “Well done, thou good and faithful servant” …not “Well?”
This week let’s review our “Four Facets of Faithfulness”:
- Every sinner is an opportunity for salvation (Luke 9:10)
Three Salvation Standards:
- Never turn your ministry into your enemy.
- Resist the system with courage. Reach the souls with compassion.
- People are not annoyances or distractions, but moments and opportunities.
- Every saint is an opportunity for exhortation (Heb. 3:13)
Here the Bible tells us, “But exhort one another daily, while it is called Today; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”
Last week we began sharing “4 Encouragement Entries”:
- Encouragement is oxygen to the soul. The Bible tells us, “And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.” This is my 40th year of ministry and over the years I have watched people thrive in an atmosphere of encouragement. I have watched people suffocate absent of encouragement.
2. Give everyone you meet the “Triple A” service…affirmation, appreciation and attention. People need all three and when you are with them even for a brief moment…be where you are! Give people the “Triple A” service!
This week let’s continue with…
3. Never underestimate the power of an encouraging word (Prov. 25:21). Here the Bible says, “If your enemy is hungry, give him bread to eat; and if he is thirsty, give him water to drink.” At the time in which this was written, apples were a delicacy and apples of gold were a sign of great opulence. Only the very wealthy could afford such a treasure. “Settings of silver” is referring to a time increment of the era. Here Solomon is clearly telling us that an encouraging word is both very valuable and very timely!
I can remember back decades ago when I was a young believer and struggling with an issue. I can remember when one of my friends in the church encouraged me. I remember where it was and when it was…it was so valuable and timely to me! I have people in Joy Church who will tell me that they have an encouraging note I sent them from six years ago or ten years ago. They keep it in their Bible! Never underestimate the power of an encouraging word!
4. People work before paper work. I recognize people barely know what paper is anymore, but just in case you are old enough to remember, I simply wanted to remind you…people work before paper work!
There is so much power in encouragement! (See Proverbs 12:25) Recently I have instituted what I call “encouragement day.” Once a month I have marked on my calendar a day when I set aside most of my day to encourage others. Through calls, texts, notes and gifts, etc. May I challenge you to try this in 2023 just for one day…it may just be the best day of your life!
When I think of encouragement I think of a story I heard about the late Billy Graham. There was a famous Christian publisher who was the head of a well-known Christian magazine. He had two interviews on a certain day. One was with another very famous Christian television preacher and one with Billy Graham. He met first with the television preacher and spent quite a few hours with him.
The publisher reported coming away from spending time with this famous preacher very impressed with his ministry. For hours the TV preacher spoke of the vastness of his ministry. The publisher came away from this meeting thinking very highly of this famous preacher.
His next interview was with Billy Graham. Upon entrance, Mr. Graham warmly greeted this publisher and said, “Hi, I’m Billy…what’s your name?” and from this proceeded to ask the publisher all kinds of questions about his family and ministry. This publisher came away from his first interview feeling really good about the famous preacher’s ministry. But the publisher came away from his second interview with Billy Graham feeling really good about himself. It’s amazing how encouragement will get people feeling really good about themselves!
Remember in 2023:
- Every sinner is an opportunity for salvation.
- Every saint is an opportunity for exhortation.
Next month we will continue our series!