Someone has said that encouragement is simply reminding a person of the "shoulders" he's standing on, the heritage he's been given. That's what happened when a young man, the son of a star baseball player, was drafted by one of the minor league teams. As hard as he tried, his first season was disappointing, and by midseason he expected to be released any day.
The coaches were bewildered by his failure because he possessed all the characterisitics of a superb athlete, but he couldn't seem to incorporate those advantages into a coordinated effort. He seemed to have become disconnected from his potential.
His future seemed darkest one day when he had already struck out his first time at bat. Then he stepped up to the batter's box again and quickly ran up two strikes. The catcher called a time-out and trotted to the pitcher's mound for a conference. While they were busy, the umpire, standing behind the plate, spoke casually to the boy.
Then play resumed, the next pitch was thrown--and the young man knocked it out of the park. That was the turning point. From then on, he played the game with a new confidence and power that quickly drew the attention of the parent team, and he was called up to the majors.
On the day he was leaving for the city, one of his coaches asked him what had caused such a turnaround. The young man replied it was the encouraging remark the umpire had made that day when his baseball career had seemed doomed.
"He told me I reminded him of all the times he had stood behind my dad in the batter's box," the boy explained. "He said I was holding the bat just the way Dad had held it." And he told me, 'I can see his genes in you; you have your father's arms.' After that, whenever I swung the bat, I just imagined I was using my Dad's arms instead of my own." - by Barbara Johnson from "We Brake for Joy!"
This story speaks to me in several ways:
First, as a follower of Jesus I must consider who my Father is. The Father who loved Jesus so much also loves me. - John 3: 16
Second, as one of the Father's kids I have to remember whose strength I can operate in. By being a follower of Jesus, the Father has come to dwell in me by the Holy Spirit. - John 14: 16
And Third, when I am faced with struggles and need encouragement I need to have confidence in what the Father will do by the power of the Holy Spirit in my life. - Acts 1: 8
If you are a follower of Jesus you have the same ministry that He mentioned in Luke 4: 18-19 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.
I encourage you to remember whose shoulders you stand upon anduse your talents and gifts to reach those who waiting to hear the truth that the Holy Spirit has to deliver through you.
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