Keep it in the Black

Pleasant words are like a honeycomb; sweetness to the soul and health to the bones. Proverbs 16:24 NKJV

I’m a big believer in true and sincere encouragement of people that surround us. All too often, it comes easy to let it flow when it comes to taking a withdrawal – giving feedback, criticism, whether in a harsh manner or veiled under being “constructive.” I think there are times and places for kind correction or admonishment, sure. But if we don’t make enough deposits in regard to our relationships, those times can seem to put our account with that relationship into the red. It gets expensive. It costs in the relationship. It costs in the person’s heart. And it most certainly costs the person who keeps withdrawing when he has no surplus there in the first place.

Today, is someone around you hurting? Frustrated? Under a bit of stress? Practice letting the words of encouragement flow from you to them. Eventually, if we really make a point of doing it, this will become all-the-easier and begin to flow out of us like honey!

It is a practice, you know. It comes easier if we reach down into the heart and think about that person instead of ourselves. It gets easier every time, and every single penny we deposit adds up over time. It doesn’t have to always be 100 dollars worth of encouragement, friends. It can even be, “wow, it looked like you had fun putting your new skateboard wheels on…that’s really neat you are so into that.”

I promise it gets easier every single time. And God promises that lives are enriched and we are fulfilling His will by loving one another in this way. The more we do it, the more we, and those who are the recipients of our words of encouragement will feel it – all the way down in our bones!

Let’s keep our accounts with others in the black. And for those that are in the red, all we can do is start making good and real deposits to turn things around. Let’s start today!

Advertisement