READING: EPHESIANS 1:1-3
‘Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Peace be to the God and Father of our Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.’
REFLECTION
This letter to the church in Ephesus is incredible and I encourage you to read it through when you have a chance. It’s only six chapters long but it is packed full of great teaching on unity and what it means to be alive in Christ.

Today's reading is Paul’s introduction to his letter. This letter would have been passed around the different churches in the area and read out loud to a crowd of believers. Paul often begins his letters with an introduction and always includes a word of encouragement to those listening.

Encouraging others should be a regular daily occurrence for Christians. It should be the first thing we do when we meet people. Encouraging others is a gift and something that I think most people are not so good at. Paul’s mentor, Barnabas, was often referred to as the son of encouragement…so perhaps Paul learnt this habit from Barnabas!

Learning the habit of encouraging is so important. Imagine if every day you received a word of encouragement from a friend, your spouse, someone at work, a stranger, or even your boss! I know that if that happened to me every day, life would be so much better. But due to busy lives, pressure of deadlines, overwhelming stress, we often forget to encourage those around us.

I often think that if we want to see a culture change we need to create the culture that we long to see. So instead of waiting for others to encourage you, why not begin by encouraging others. I have tried to do this recently by sending a text or email or even posting a letter to someone once a week. I don’t do it because I want the glory or for someone to say something nice back but because as Christians we are called to bring the light of God into the world. And it can be done by simply encouraging others.

So who can you encourage today? We never really know what people are going through in their lives. So a small bit of encouragement might transform someones day.
PRAY
A prayer for today…Thank you for reminding us about encouragement. Help me today to encourage someone so that they might know the light, love and joy of Jesus Christ. Amen.