Each week we feature a devotional, book review or testimony ~ a “Devotional Spotlight”, written by a woman in our ministry. Today’s devotional comes from Kathy Cort.
“A Note of Encouragement…And a Challenge For You!”
Could you use some encouragement at this moment? I could fill a note card for you with my own words and it may be true and helpful, but compared to God’s words, it would just be platitudes. It all really comes down to Scripture. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The handwritten note in my Bible from a previous study of this verse identifies the Greek transliterated Logos (Word) to be the “omnipresent wisdom from which all things are steered.” Don’t you feel yourself exhale a bit when you read this? As women, we are so often the glue that holds everything in our worlds together. Isn’t it a relief to know that God already holds it all in His Almighty hand? Psalm 119:105 tells us that, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”
With that in mind, take a few moments to read Romans 15:1-7. Paul is talking to the church in Rome and instructing them on unity. In verse 5, Paul prays, “May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” To be clear, Paul has already told them in verse 4 that it is through Scripture that we receive hope through endurance and encouragement. He has also urged them to “please his neighbor for his good, to build him up” (vs. 2). When I read this passage, I feel Paul’s urging to seek unity with my sisters in Christ through a building up of our faith. How do we do that? We do that with Scripture. We point each other to God’s precious and Holy Word. Why do we do that? Read verse 5 again. We do it for the glory of Christ Jesus! What a privilege!
A Challenge For You
Think of your sisters in Christ. Who among them needs some encouragement? Who is thirsty for a reminder of the hope that God’s Word brings to their lives full of busyness, sickness, grieving, turmoil, commitments, or persecution? We have the opportunity to sharpen them and bring them back to fullness in their hope found in Scripture. Proverbs 27:17 tells us this when it says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.”
Will you accept a challenge? Allow God to put the names of 5 sisters in Christ on your heart who could use encouragement. Then take the time to write a short note to them and include a verse or passage of scripture because it is the power of God’s Word that changes hearts and brings comfort. Set a goal of sending all 5 cards out in one month and pray over each woman who will receive it.
Click HERE for your own printable notecards
Think about how you feel when you receive a note in the mail. You go to the mailbox and spot an envelope that is definitely not the envelope of a bill. Then you expectantly look at the addressee and find your name – not anyone else’s name and not “resident”. How special do you feel in that moment? How excited are you to see what is inside? What a blessing it would be to fill the inside of the note with God’s Holy Word – to bathe the recipient with Scripture for a few moments of her day!
“May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.” 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17
