Be A Person of Encouragement

DSC09282A few years ago, I read a book called Magnetic Christianity by radio host and inspirational speaker, Gus Lloyd. I was reminded, while listening to Gus’ program yesterday morning, of his last chapter which is on encouragement. I’ve actually been thinking about this word a lot lately. What is encouragement? How can we be people of encouragement? And why do we want to be?

To encourage or give encouragement is “to inspire with courage, spirit, or confidence.”  It’s more than merely giving a pat on the back or simply saying good job. It’s the act of inspiring someone, of uplifting their spirit, of boosting their confidence. Those are pretty lofty aspirations, if you ask me. Think about it – giving encouragement to someone could actually make a difference in a person’s life. You could be the catalyst that allows someone to feel victory instead of defeat, success instead of failure, or become the person they were meant to be.  Read more

Girl Power

DSC04512This past weekend, I took my Girl Scout troop to a nearby state park to try their skills at the Tuckahoe Challenge Course.  The course consists of a 50 foot high rock climbing wall that leads to a 300 foot long zip line, a spring swing that drops a person from a 70 foot height, and a 15 foot high fireman’s pole from which the climber needs to stand and jump to a bar swing in order to get down.  My girls, ages 12 to 19, were told that a Boy Scout troop had visited the day before, and only one boy made it over the wall.  Of course, this spurred my girls on and laid down the challenge for all of them to do their best to make it over the wall to the zip line on the other side.

Morgan was the first in our troop to attempt the climb.  The other DSC04431girls marveled at the way the muscles in her legs bulged as she made her ascent.  A couple of times, she lost her grip or became confused about which way to go, but her friends on the ground cheered her on, guided her steps, and encouraged her in her climb.  Within about five minutes, Morgan lifted her legs over the wall, stood on the platform on the other side, and looked down triumphantly at the cheering girls below.  They all basked in the glow of her achievement. Read more