Ministry of Encouragement
Rev. Gus Carter 10 /17 /04
The Readings which relate to this sermon are at this link.

I think that we should fix in our minds the image given to us in the first reading. Moses told Joshua to fight for the Israelites, and he, Moses, would pray for him. As long as Moses held his arms out in prayer, the tide of battle went for the Hebrews. However, whenever he tired and put his hands down, the course of battle went against his forces. Then two men, Aaron and Hur, propped up Moses' arms until the battle was won. The image of support is an important one for Christians. In order to live our faith we need sustaining help. We are all like Moses. As long as we have support, it seems that in the struggles of life we can hope for a favorable outcome.

This morning I would like to reflect a little on the kinds of support there are, and about how much support we are actually receiving from others. Have you ever reflected on how you are supporting others by the way you participate in the Mass? Your presence, your expression of faith, support the faith and belief of others as they experience from you how precious your faith is to you. When we actively participate in the Mass, we create an atmosphere of faith that helps everyone in the church to worship. Our participation naturally increases our sense of involvement. We always grow in faith by expressing it.

All of us, at times, have been discouraged and disheartened. Then someone by a word or by a willingness to stay with us until we could get a hold on ourselves, gave us the courage to move on. Sometimes a small bit of help given allows us to see that we can do the rest. We need to remember those people, those occasions. Belief is difficult when everything seems to be going wrong in our lives. Under extreme conditions we can even wonder if God exist. The faith of others props us up. Our is a communal faith, a shared faith. Our faith binds us to all the other members of Christ's Body.

We live in a society where God is hardly mentioned. In can be very lonely believing by oneself. It's a struggle when all the actions and ideas going on around us seem to criticize the way we are living. When we meet people who have deep faith, who live their lives in such a way that they shine before others, they become sources of great comfort and strength for us. We need just such verification for what we believe. There are many important ministries in the church. I would hope that you would take home today a sense of the ministry of encouragement.

Our society encourages critical thinking, but it often results only in fault finding. The media loves to report scandals because that is what people tune into and read. Thank God, there are some attempts to report on the vast amount of good that goes on at the same time. As followers of Christ we need to be persons who encourage, persons who sense the good and bring out the good in others. I've done a good deal of counseling, and I've found that the most important thing I could do for others is to help them realize their strengths, to help them have a grasp of their good qualities, their talents. Living out of our real strengths, having confidence in our abilities, equip us to live the satisfaction of using our talents and aiding others.

Often we do find those who are critical, always finding fault and putting others down. They never seem to like what others are doing. We must keep in mind that positive feedback, highlighting the good of others, creates more change for good than criticism. In each one of us there is the desire to be a good person. When we notice the good qualities of others, when we compliment them on the good they do, we are involved in the ministry of encouragement. We are helping to spread goodness and truth throughout the world. We each need to reflect on what is the tenor of our daily lives. Do I have any idea of how I effect others day by day? What is the general tone of my attitude toward others? Do I pray consistently that I will be a healthy, life-giving influence on those I live and work with.

In the Second Letter to the Corinthians St. Paul prays to God, "Father of compassion and God of all encouragement ... who encourages us in our every affliction so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we are ourselves are encouraged by God. ' The Book of Deuteronomy declares the word from God: "Be holy because I am holy." St. John calls us to love God and others because God first loved us. Our serving the "God of Encouragement" gives us the vocation of being encouraging people.