When a child draws a picture, you say, “Wow! That is beautiful!” even when you have no idea what they drew.
School plays are painful. Most of the time the kids mumble into the microphone, or they forget their lines altogether. Half of the performers are distracted and are not where they ought to be. At the end, they sing some song really off-key. What do you do? You give them a standing ovation.
I used to coach hockey. No matter how many times we told them to spread out, seven-year-olds play hockey in a group. When the puck is in the corner, so are all the players. Half of them have fallen down and when one finally gets a chance to take a shot, she misses the puck and almost falls over too. After the game, everyone talks as if that was the most exciting thing they had ever seen.
We do these things for one reason: love cheers for people!
That is until we become adults. Then, for some reason, we stop cheering for one another and start competing. We become jealous of what others have or what they get to do. We act as if it somehow hurts me if you do well.
The truth is, though, I have the same life whether you do well or not. Life is not a pie. I do not get less if you get more. Your success or failure has very little to do with me, so why would I not cheer for you to do well?
Paul cheers for the Colossian church when he writes, “We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God’s people” (Colossians 1:3-4).
We are told that the angels in heaven cheer and celebrate when people are saved (Luke 15:10). The father in the story of the prodigal, or lost, son says, “We had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found” (Luke 15:32).
God is cheering for you! He wants the best for you. He celebrates when you take a step in the right direction (John 3:16-17).
We never outgrow the need for encouragement.
Start cheering for one another!
