“thank you dad,” with a huge smile plastered over her face, was what i repeatedly witnessed as my sweet mom spoke on the phone with her biological dad. sadly to say, and even sadder to think about, this sweet man on the other end of the phone faces a continual battle with a severe, life-altering disease.
right when hanging up the phone, my mom broke down crying. she explained that it was not just because they walked down memory lane while on the phone, but also because of the extreme and extraordinary ways her dad always ENCOURAGES her. whenever she would so easily point out a flaw or a time she should / could have done something different, he validated how she did JUST the right thing 🙂 not only that, but he told her how she did life WELL. bitterness did not have any space in his heart, therefore he had nothing to say but to encourage her in the way she is living and has always lived.
after hearing this, my mind was immediately flooded with a question.. what if we lived each day + spoke each word only to completely encourage those we encounter?? and ya i don’t mean the encourage like “hey, you look great today” although compliments are not a bad thing. encourage, as in radically + genuinely pour out encouragement and support of someone. come behind them in support + love and truly cheer them on in exactly who they are, whatever stage they are in. rather than reminding others what they are not, remind them all the very things they ARE and to whom they belong. it’s almost like that is what life should be all about.
i guess what i am saying is, i have seen that encouragement goes a lot farther than judgment, and encouraging someone can even make them break down and cry, happy tears of course 😉
M
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