Happy New Year, y’all!!!

It’s been a long time since I posted on my blog.  This has been a very crazy, very busy year.

I’ve been wanting to get back to my Faith Friday posts but hadn’t made the move yet.

The other day I was talking to a friend and she said she wished I would start putting devotions on my blog again.  She told me she enjoyed them and missed them.

When she said that I felt as if God was trying to tell me something.

He was ready for me to blog again too.

So here I am.  Changing the format, a bit.  Instead of Faith Friday, this will be Monday Whispers of Faith.

I think I’ll have better luck posting on Monday rather than Friday.  So, let’s give it a try.  I can’t promise a new post every Monday but I’m going to try to get back in the groove.  I hope you’ll come along with me.

Today let’s talk about ENCOURAGEMENT.

What does it mean to you?

We can see the word COURAGE right in the middle.

When you encourage someone, you give them courage.

I’m not a very brave person.  Sometimes I feel like the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz but when my friend said she enjoyed my devotions she gave me courage.

Courage to get back up and try again.

God created humans to help one another. Life is hard and we all need people to lift us up.

It’s fun to be around a person who has a bright attitude and shares love with her friends.

Some people are natural encouragers – gifted by GOD.

I think of Barnabas in the Bible.  His name means “son of consolation,” and he lived up to his name.  He encouraged the disciples and the new Christians.

When Saul of Tarsus was blinded by the light and had a radical encounter with Jesus – Barnabas was one of the first people to believe that Saul’s (Paul’s) transformation was real.  He convinced the other people to give Paul a chance.

Encouragement is very important.  If you’re a natural encourager – God bless you.  Keep it up.

As for the rest of us, let’s make encouragement one of our New Year resolutions.

Look for ways that you can encourage a friend or family member.

Show kindness to people at the grocery store even when we’re trapped in long lines.

Let’s give ENCOURAGEMENT a try.

I’d love to hear your ideas about encouragement.  Please comment below.

Until next time – keep up the Faith.