Number three: Be honest
Whoa, I can hear you saying. How does being honest encourage anyone?!
Well, one of the things a person with the Spiritual Gift of Encouragement does is be open and honest with others. Normally, they have the tact to implement the truth well. (I am one who fails at the tact part all too often!)
The Gift of Encouragement is also known as the Gift of Exhortation. The idea is that a person pushes others on toward a closer relationship in Christ; in being their best for God; in becoming the person God wants them to be.
That can’t happen if a person stays in the same spot and doesn’t plan to grow. Sometimes growth means trimming rotting branches now and then.
[Tweet “Sometimes growth means trimming rotting branches now and then.”]
We all need friends who are our biggest cheerleaders and also the ones who can pull us aside to lovingly let us know where our flaws our, where we could improve, where we need God to work in us a little bit more.
So what do you think? Is there someone who you have been feeling a tug to be honest with about something? Maybe now would be a good time to do it.
God bless,
Jenn
About Jenn: I’m a Christian wife to an amazing man (since 1998) and a stay-at-home-teaching mom to four special & incredible boys (born in 2004, 2005, 2007, & 2009). I’m messy and cluttered, but working on that (really, I am!). I’m a discouraged perfectionist and a classic procrastinator who probably has both ADD & Autism, so I tend to jump from topic to topic (and activity to activity) without notice. My Love Languages are Words of Affirmation and Physical Touch. I’m an INFP who enjoys friends but loves to be alone. I love getting and giving hugs, and encouragement is a Spiritual gift of mine that can too-easily be turned into the weapon of discouragement, if I’m not careful. I enjoy writing, singing, words, drawing, photography, digital creations, and reading. Oh, and pizza, tacos, and steak. Now I’m hungry. That reminds me; I eat gluten free and try to eat organic and avoid white sugar and GMOs as much as possible. Find me on Facebook (Writer/Editor page) (Fan page), Twitter, Pinterest, or Instagram.
