The Great Work: Encouragement

Posted on by Michele Morin

“Don’t corral others to meet your needs.”

“Choose to be a servant.”

“Give yourself away.”

If you’re interviewing a guy who wears the title “Chief Encouragement Officer” like a banner, you can expect to hear lots of sentences like these.  Here’s another one:  “The goal is to get small and, in humility, to build others up.”

And any of these could be the mission statement for David “JB” Miller or for the Life Letter Cafe, the on-line ministry he has founded based on the truth that God chooses to invest deeply into the lives of those who pour themselves into others.

With  200+ bloggers sharing their work at The Cafe, it has become a well-spring of encouragement for readers, and, as one of the bloggers,  I can say with certainty that Life Letter Cafe also encourages the writers who share their words in that friendly space.

When I asked David about a favorite Scripture, he immediately shared Proverbs 11:25b:

“Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.”

This is a principle that reverberates throughout the Bible.  In fact, I checked out Biblical usage of the word “refreshed” using Blue Letter Bible and found it has been used seven times, and it carries the positive sense of being comforted, strengthened, or established.  According to the Old Testament, refreshment can come in various ways:

  • Genesis and the Song of Solomon both speak of food that provides refreshment.
  • In Psalm 68:9, rain refreshes a weary land.
  • Proverbs 3:22 and 25:13 declare that wisdom, discretion, and a trustworthy messenger refresh like snow in the summer or like jewels on a necklace.
  • Then, in the New Testament, Peter the faithful messenger and carrier of wisdom to the recipients of his second letter reminds his readers that he is trying to refresh their memory and to stimulate wholesome thinking.

Food for the soul, wisdom for living, a faithful message, and living water for those who thirst are key to the refreshment provided at Life Letter Cafe, and the ministry is expanding.  In our era of virtual gatherings, naturally there is no brick and mortar involved, and, frankly, I am the last person who should be explaining this expansion because I only just barely understand the back side of my own blog, but here’s the goal:
1.  Rebuild the Life Letter Cafe with the capacity for 500 guest contributors;
2.  Build participation from the current 50 thousand monthly readers to 100 thousand;
3.  Offer several new services and leverage increased influence for the purpose of contributing financially to the rescue of the unborn.

David and his team are still in the early stages of planning and praying their way through this process.  You can read more detail about the project here or explore the SmashFund crowd funding tool that is just now getting underway.

 

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And while you’re busy pondering all this goodness, how is your soul being refreshed these days?

Have you passed the refreshment along to another?

//

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I link-up with a number of blogging  communities on a regular basis.  They are listed in the left sidebar by day of the week.  I hope that you will take a moment to enjoy reading the work of some of these fine writers and thinkers.

 

Published by Michele Morin

Michele Morin is a teacher, blogger, reader, and gardener who finds joy in sitting at a table surrounded by women with open Bibles. She has been married to an unreasonably patient husband for thirty years, and together they have four sons, two daughters-in-love, three grandchildren, and one lazy St. Bernard. Michele loves hot tea and well-crafted sentences, poems that stop her in her tracks and days at the ocean with the whole family. She laments biblical illiteracy and advocates for the prudent use of “little minutes.” She blogs at Living Our Days, and you can connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

30 thoughts on “The Great Work: Encouragement”

  2. Michele, I love this interview with David from Life Letter Café! It always amazes me how he finds new and creative ways to encourage all his 200+ Life Writers…I know he truly is the Chief Encouragement Officer to me since I joined the team a couple of years ago. Many blessings that others will find out about Life Letter Café and want to join the team and support the new expansion! Many blessings to you!

    Liked by 1 person

  3. Michele,
    I found this post really close to my heart ❤
    Proverbs 11:25b: “Those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.” Is a life-verse for me to. It is my purpose in life to refresh others. Thanks for sharing and I'm going to check out this Life Letter Cafe.
    Have a blessed weekend!
    ~Sherry

    Like

  4. Michele, you are one of the best encouragers I know! You are such a blessing to me and to many others, I am sure. Thank you for being so faithful.

    Many blessings to you!

    Like

  5. I have only seen the Life Letter Cafe logo. I’m going to have to go over and have a look around. Thanks, Michele, for sharing with Thankful Thursdays.

    Like

  8. Michele,
    I had never heard of Life Letter Cafe…will have to check it out. Of course nothing refreshes like being in the Word, but next to that a kind word spoken to me by a person I love is good for my soul. I don’t know a single person who isn’t refreshed by a kind word aptly spoken.
    Blessings,
    Bev

    Like

  14. Michele- I’m a new Life Writer and David certainly does refresh me throughout the day. I might be questioning this whole writing thing, and up pops a tweet with my name attached. A little chant of encouragement to remember who I am working for. God needs people spreading hope, especially now.
    You explained the whole smash fund and expansion better than I could;)
    Blessings to you!
    Julie

    Like

    1. HA! Thanks for your reassurance. Honestly, if it were possible to blog without ever touching a computer, I’d be a happy girl. And, yes, the cafe is a source of real encouragement for us all. Thanks, Julie, for your words of blessing that come so often!

      Like

  16. I love that you highlighted Life Letter cafe. It is a beautiful community and David is a gem. His heart for building others up is a wonderful example to all. Glad I dug a little bit to see what else you have been writing recently.

    Like

  17. I am glad you were my neighbor today over at Jaime’s place! I really am excited God has brought Life Letter into our paths, and I pray mighty things will come out of this faithful work! Thanks so much for sharing more about it, Michele!

    Liked by 1 person

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