1 Thessalonians 5:11
English Standard Version (ESV)
11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.
When my dad was alive I used to take him to all the UL basketball games. I love UL basketball. Dad loved watching the cheerleaders. I admit I too would watch them from time to time. The truth is I find cheerleaders a bit irritating. All that smiling and perkiness is a bit much.
I admit I wouldn’t make a very good cheerleader. I don’t have the figure for it. I’m the kind of fan who says “We won” when my team wins and “They lost” when my team doesn’t. Cheerleaders aren’t like that. They keep on jumping around and getting excited when their team, down by forty points, makes a lousy first down.
While I admit I’m not a very good cheerleader. I have to say I desperately could use a couple. I would like someone to be excited about everything I do. I would like to see a smiling face and hear an encouraging word even when I am not setting the world on fire.
I think we Americans are so competitive that we find it hard to be cheerleaders. We are quick to criticize and slow to encourage. I guess like me we think it’s not too cool to be so up and perky all the time. Even when we ourselves are dying inside for someone to be all excited about us. The sad truth is we are too self-centered, too worried about our own game to cheer for someone else.
And if we are that way, what about the ones we love: our spouses, our kids, our friends, our pastors. Couldn’t they all use a little cheerleading? The last couple of days David Jeremiah has been talking about how kids need cheerleaders. I guess we are all kids at heart. I think we should expand his idea to all of us.
Do we even know how to cheer lead? Cheerleaders focus on their teams every move. They are totally into the game. We need folks who are totally in to what we are doing. Who are encouraging every day and with every play.
A good cheerleader knows that each player is different. We need encouragement in our game. We need someone to cheer us on in what we do. We don’t all do the same things. This is true of parents and kids. Each child needs special individualized attention. We are all kids we all need that attention. We don’t need to be encouraged about what the cheerleader thinks is important. We need to be encouraged about what we have been called to do.
Do you feel like you could use a cheerleader? Try being a cheerleader for others. Maybe they will get the point and you’ll start hearing some encouragement. If not, you’ll at least have the satisfaction of being an encouraging cheerleader yourself.
Go team and be blessed.
Nick
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