Theme: Encourage Others 

Verse:  1 Thessalonians 5:11  

The movie “We Are Marshall” is based on the true and tragic story of the plane crash that killed nearly the entirety of the 1970 Marshall University football team.  Near the end of the film, the new head coach gives an inspiring speech which is essentially a eulogy for the 75 people that perished in the crash. He implores his new players to work hard and give everything they have to the task at hand (that day’s football game), The key portion of the speech goes like this,  

“When you take that field today, you've gotta lay that heart on the line, men. From the souls of your feet, with every ounce of blood you've got in your body, lay it on the line until the final whistle blows. And if you do that, IF YOU DO THAT, we cannot lose. We may be behind on the scoreboard at the end of the game but if you play like that we cannot be defeated.” 

WE CANNOT BE DEFEATED!  Now those are inspiring words.  There will be struggles along the way and at some point, each one of us will need some encouragement to get beyond the disappointment of what appears to be a “LOSS”.  But at other times, we surely will have the chance to be the encourager. If we support each other with an attitude of genuine caring, we all will get through our struggles and be better for it on the other side.  

This week’s challenge: Look for a way to encourage others.  If we do that for one another, WE CANNOT LOSE, WE CANNOT BE DEFEATED.  

Have a great week! 

Adapted from They Will Run and Not Grow Weary by David Alan Black