Proverbs 12:25

“Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, But a good word makes it glad.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭12:25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬


While being in Montana, the Lord has truly been growing me in understanding how He wants me to use my giftings. It has been something that has constantly been in my prayers and He has definitely been answering those prayers. Encouragement has been something that He's really been trying to grow me in. It's amazing to see how much He's been my encourager and through that I have been able to learn how to encourage others. But at times it honestly isn't as easy as it sounds to simply encourage someone. Encouragement is just like any other gift of the Spirit, you have to be Spirit-filled in order to minister with this gift effectively. It's so easy for words that have failed to be completely selfless and Spirit lead to just bounce right off of people and be completely ineffective. At times they can even impact the person negatively and sink them deeper into whatever depth that they are in. It is so important to ask if what you're saying is truly edifying to the Lord and if what you're about to say is truly what this person needs to hear? I haven't been perfect, but I've been learning, and most importantly I've been taking it to the Lord in prayer. But I've seen how much the Lord wants to use me to minister to others and I have been a witness to the impact that it can have on others when used correctly. It's honestly something that I love doing and am truly blessed to be used in such a way that I enjoy so much. However, although I love doing it, doesn't mean I'm always going to be attempting to use it in the Spirit rather than in the flesh. Our Father is good, and the words that we use to encourage others should come from His goodness. Because sometimes people need to see God’s goodness, and we might be the vessel in which God is attempting to show His goodness through. And if we aren't being led by the Spirit, then our words aren't coming from God, and will most likely fail to encourage those who truly need it. There has been a person who I feel like has been needing a lot of encouragement here lately, but I haven't discovered how best to minister to them yet. Every time I am with that person for the rest of this week, I'm going to pray that God would use me effectively to minister to His child, and that I would be Spirit led in reaching out to this person.

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