When playing basketball with her girlfriends, Amber realized her community could benefit from an all-female league. So she started a nonprofit organization to foster teamwork and impact the next generation. The leaders of Ladies Who Hoop strive to build confidence and character in the women and girls and encourage them to become meaningful contributors to their local communities. One of the original players who now mentors other girls said, “There is so much camaraderie among us. This is something I’d been missing. We support each other in so many different ways. I love seeing the girls succeed and grow.”
God intends His people to team up to help each other as well. The apostle Paul urged the Thessalonians to “encourage one another and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). God has put us into the family of His people for support in our lives. We need each other to keep walking the path of life in Christ. Sometimes that may mean listening to someone who’s struggling, providing for a practical need, or speaking a few words of encouragement. We can celebrate successes, offer a prayer for strength in a difficulty, or challenge each other to grow in faith. And in everything, we can “always strive to do what is good for each other” (v. 15).
What camaraderie we can enjoy as we team up with other believers in Jesus to keep trusting God together!
By Anne Cetas
REFLECT & PRAY
In what ways have others encouraged you? How can you prepare yourself to receive and give support to others?
I love being a part of Your family, God. Show me how I can have a part in the lives of others.
SCRIPTURE INSIGHT
When Paul urged his readers to encourage one another” (1 Thessalonians 5:11), he used a Greek word (parakaleo) that can also mean to comfort. The word translated “advocate” (referring to the Holy Spirit) in John 14:16, 26 and 16:7 comes from the same root word.
Paul used his letter to lovingly urge believers in Jesus to help one another live together in the Spirit of Christ who died for them (1 Thessalonians 5:10). But Paul gave them more than words; he also showed how much he cared for them. He honored them by letting them know how much they’d encouraged him (1:2–10). Then he gently reminded them how, like a little child, he’d humbled himself among them (2:6–7); how he’d cared for them like a nursing mother (vv. 7–10), and how he’d looked after them like a father who comforts and encourages his own children (vv. 11–12).
Mart DeHaan
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