The Power of Encouragement
Published: Wed, 04/29/20
Sessions Include:Messy Relationships / Lesson #1 Messy Relationships / Lesson #2 Messy Relationships / Lesson #3 Messy Relationships / Lesson #4 Messy Relationships / Lesson #5 Messy Relationships / Lesson #6 |
Some of the greatest success stories of history have followed a word of encouragement from a loved one or a trusting friend. Had it not been for a confident and encouraging wife, Sophia, we might not have listed among the great names of literature the name of Nathaniel Hawthorne. When Nathaniel, a heartbroken man, went home to tell his wife he was a failure and had been fired from his job in a customhouse, she surprised him with an exclamation of joy.
From her trust and confidence came one of the greatest novels of American literature, The Scarlet Letter.1 When most people who’ve achieved great things tell their stories, they mention those who encouraged them along the way. Many of the great musical composers at one time or another were ready to quit, but someone stepped in and said, “No, you can’t quit!” Many of the great writers submitted hundreds of manuscripts before they were ever published; they would have given up if someone hadn’t come along and said, “No, I believe in you. Keep writing. You can do it.” Many great athletes would have given up on themselves, but there was somebody who wouldn’t allow it. When these folks tell their stories, they all talk about the person who kept them going, the one who wouldn’t let them quit, the one who spoke a word of encouragement at exactly the right moment. David Jeremiah, The Power of Encouragement (Sisters, OR: Multnomah Books, 1997), 82–86. We have just released a new Bible study on: Messy Relationships These lessons are available on Amazon, as well as a part of my Good Questions Have Groups Talking Subscription Service. Like Netflix for Bible Lessons, one low subscription gives you access to all our lessons--thousands of them. For a medium-sized church, lessons are as little as $10 per teacher per year. |