Encouraged

This week we began our series called “Encouraged.” We’re going to be looking at a few doxologies of the New Testament. Doxology may sound like a big, complicated word. It may kind of sound like a dry, boring word too. But it’s really not either of those things.

A doxology is simply a way to shift your perspective from discouraged to encouraged by focusing on God. It’s just that easy!

I think encouragement is a lost art in the world today. The headlines seem to focus exclusively on discouraging news. I guess that’s what sells. Social media videos that go viral with encouraging info seem to be rare. Maybe we need to change that.

Encouragement – or really discouragement for that matter – is cultivated by what we allow to inhabit our mind. What we think about, occupy ourselves with, mull over in our head will in many ways determine what we become. What we pay attention to is what we will get out of life.

So, shouldn’t we pay attention to good things?

That’s what a doxology does. It allows us to go beyond what is already in our minds to give us something better to focus on. And the very first doxology we read gets right to the heart of it.

Ephesians 3:20

“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine…”

In other words, the God who is able to more than what you can keep right there in your head. He is able to more than anything you could come up with on your own. No one could think it would be this good!

I’m talking about the Milwaukee Bucks now. Did you ever imagine this could happen? That they would be just a couple of wins from going to the NBA finals? They’ve already topped their best season result since 2000. And very few of us can think back to the last time they were on top of the world, in 1970 when they won it all.

Of course their record in recent years have given us all small expectations. It’s kept us from imagining anything great from them. It’s left us discouraged.

But what we’re seeing now is encouraging. It’s great! In fact, we could even use the word miracle.

I know the word miracle gets used a lot. And when we apply it to God, some theologians get nervous. “Wait a minute. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Does God really work miracles today?” And that’s probably because of our view on miracles. God parting the Red Sea, making it rain down manna, multiplying a few fish and loaves to feed thousands. These are miracles. And when was the last time we saw anything on that scale?

But maybe we need to rethink this whole idea of miracle. In two ways. First of all, what if we just used Ephesians 3:20 as our definition. In other words, what if we just said that a miracle was when God does something beyond what we could ask or imagine. That means that when you just got the worst news and you don’t think you could ever feel joy again, but God shows up and reassures you – that’s a miracle. When you get that encouraging call from an old friend that you hadn’t though about in years – that’s a miracle. Any time it’s dark and God shines light when you least expect it – that’s a miracle.

The other way we need to rethink a miracle is in what it does for us. It’s not about multiplying some financial investment, breaking the laws of physics for our convenience, or supernaturally stirring people. Let’s look at the reason that God does miracles. He does them to share his glory with us, first of all. But he also does it to encourage us.

So anything that happens to you today that brings you encouragement, could that be a miracle? Why not! If it’s also bringing God glory, then it would be hard not to call it a miracle. And here is where it gets real practical. Because you can be a miracle. You can be the one to share an encouraging word with another person, help them when they are down, brighten up their darkest day. And when you do that, you are glorifying God while also encouraging those around you. You’re a miracle. Going beyond what others are asking and thinking. And that’s the best kind of doxology there is.