Scripture
15One day near Horesh, David received the news that Saul was on the way to Ziph to search for him and kill him. 16Jonathan went to find David and encouraged him to stay strong in his faith in God. 17“Don’t be afraid,” Jonathan reassured him. “My father will never find you! You are going to be the king of Israel, and I will be next to you, as my father, Saul, is well aware.” 18So the two of them renewed their solemn pact before the Lord. Then Jonathan returned home, while David stayed at Horesh. 1 Samuel 23:15-18
Observation
How many of us woke up to some more bad news today? There’s a good chance people that are in your sphere of influence are barely hanging on. Like David, we need a Jonathan to speak encouragement into our lives and we need to do the same for others. Jonathan literally put his life on the line in dodging his own murderous father, King Saul. He could have sent a courier with a message but instead wanted to look David in the eyes and remind him of the prophetic promise spoken over his life by Samuel all those years before. To bring encouragement to others means going out of our way, being inconvenienced, changing our plans to prioritize the heart and mental well being of a friend. The Hebrew word for encouragement used here actually translates “strengthened his hand”. David was a few fingers away from dropping off the cliff into discouragement- the removing of courage. Jonathan grabbed his hand just in time and pulled him up on to the solid ground of God’s Words which encouraged David- put courage back in. Once David had a firm grasp on the One who had a firm grasp on him, Jonathan returned home. When David focused on the bad news, “Saul knows where you are and is coming to kill you” he had the wind knocked out of him. It could be argued that Jonathan’s timely visit saved David’s life. For if David had given up, Saul surely would have ended his life. After renewing their covenant friendship before the Lord David had the confidence that God was with him and would give him victory. No doubt the author of Hebrews had this Hebrew word for encouragement in mind as they wrote, “12So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. 13Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. 14Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. 15Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many…” Hebrews 12:12-15
Application
The English word encourage comes from the Old French word encoragier, meaning "make strong, hearten." Simple words of encouragement go a long way to strengthen the soul during these discouraging times. My wife Cyndi has been a constant source of encouragement to me during these times of not being able to preach to a room full of people I love. For an extrovert like me, I have realized how much I feed off the energy in the room. Now, I preach in front of a camera and at the beginning of this process often felt like the message wasn’t getting through. Cyndi kept saying, “You can do this!” Like Jonathan to David, Cyndi kept praying for me and reminding me that God had called and anointed me to do this and that He was faithful to send His word out in a way that it would accomplish all He sent it out to do (Is. 55:11). I saw a post from Pastor Shon Kihewa on Facebook yesterday with the pictures of our New Hope Oahu media team who have been working tirelessly and constantly since the shutdown. He included these words of encouragement: “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. This team deserves a prize. I am so grateful because they’re still running. From filming to editing, at times through the late hours just so that we get to hear the gospel and worship through our online church. Not only do they cover our main services, but also include Children’s Ark, Youth and Young Adults Ministry. It’s because of this team, our Ohana can still connect and be able to give hugs (virtually). Thank you Tim, Mardi and our Multi-Media Team. Love you folks!” These words then sparked other kind words in the comments below and that's how it works. The byproduct of the contagion of Covid-19 is the spread of discouragement in the soul. Encouragement is also contagious. It’s the reciprocal effect that happens when one person is feeling encouraged as they will often spread it to others. Isolation doesn’t mean insulation and right now there are too many people who, like David in the wilderness, feel insulated from words of life and strength and it’s sapping their hope. Let’s make sure a single day doesn’t pass without reaching out to strengthen the hands and hearts of those around us. Your words have a greater effect than you could possibly know. Often times when we think of a person we dismiss it as a just random thought. It might very well be God’s way of getting our attention so we will reach out to that person with some encouragement and say, “Through Christ who gives you strength, you can do this!”
Prayer
Lord, I’m so thankful for my wife and others who strengthened my hands when they have grown weak and have put courage back into my heart when I lacked it. Help me to do the same for others. For the first time in history, every single person we know is facing the same challenges at the same time. Words of encouragement, prophetic prayers, the promises of scripture are our way through these times. Let me not get so wrapped up in what I’m dealing with that I fail to reach out to those who could use some hope today.
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