a lesson in encouragement

Thursday morning. Two words. Sorely trying. In other words, very difficult. I work at a day program for adults with disabilities. The job is very rewarding and fun, and it can also be very draining. I generally shy away from writing about my job to protect the privacy of the participants and their families. But, I wanted to share this story today.

Thursday morning had had its fair share of meltdowns by 12:20 in the afternoon. I was feeling slightly (understatement) frazzled by the time I had finished my lunch. I was praying, "Lord, please help me make it through this day." I sat down in the lunch room, and one of the participants, I'll call her Elizabeth, looked across the table at me and said, "Hi Abby!" with a big grin on her face. "Hi Elizabeth." I smiled back. "I miss you Abby, I have fun with you." Elizabeth replied, still grinning.

Talk about heartwarming.

Elizabeth's small act of encouragement gave me a burst of energy for the rest of the day. I smiled more, I laughed with more joy. I knew someone was happy that I made it to work that morning, and it made all the difference.

I want to be more like Elizabeth. I would love to be the bright spot in someone else's day. I want to be an intentional encourager. I want to see the beauty that God has created in other individuals, and speak a little joy into their lives.

"Therefore encourage one another and build one another up."

1 Thessalonians 5:11