Dustin and Caren Moore were new parents – and it showed! They struggled to change their newborn’s diaper. To make matters worse, they were on an airplane flying at cruising altitude. As the baby squirmed and cried, they felt the weight of eyes upon them. That’s when Jenny, one of the flight attendants, stepped in to help.
Jenny discovered Dustin and Caren had just adopted their first and only child. Jenny did more than help, she sprang into action and threw the new parents a mile-high baby shower! She made an announcement over the intercom, she passed out napkins on which other passengers wrote notes of encouragement and advice, and several passengers stopped by to congratulate them. Dustin would later comment, “For an entire crew of strangers to come together like that, to partake like that, to show us that kind of love and kindness meant everything to us.”*
Encouragement changes everything. I am thankful for all the encouragers I have had in my life. I wouldn’t be the man I am without them. It seems to me we sometimes fail to appreciate the example of encouragement Jesus left us.
Luke prefaces Jesus’ parable of the persistent woman with these words, “And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart” (Luke 18:1). It might be easy for us to skip over those words, but they are important. They show us Jesus was an encourager. People came to Jesus because He helped them be a better person, He served them unconditionally, He showed them a better way – folks, this is what a ministry of encouragement looks like! In a world choked by discouragement and despair, let’s encourage others. A little encouragement goes a long way.
*Moore family story reported in The Washington Post, February 13th 2020.
Michael S. Green