Encourage
Encouragement
The words “not yet” hit me with initial disappointment. Shortly after the disappointment was a strange sense of optimism. My forth-grade teacher, Mrs. Henderson, wrote “not yet” in green ink on the math test that I bombed. I remember studying non-stop, pouring hours into preparation. I could not have been more ready and confident to recite the multiplication table that I had been memorizing. Turns out, what I thought I knew, was a gigantic illusion. I failed, miserably. Just next to the 43%, I remember reading “not yet,” as the test was returned to my desk.
There was no question that I failed, but the words “not yet” continue to speak to me today. This indicated that my teacher was not giving up on me. She believed that I would soon get the hang of it. If she could believe in me, how could I not believe in
myself. Writing the failing grade with green ink even gave me the boost of confidence I needed. The green words said “go,” inviting me to keep trying. To this day, this experience has changed my worldview from “you failed” to “you haven’t reached your goal yet.”
As a Church, and as a society, we can sometimes be pretty awful at encouraging others. Most people, particularly youth, have enough crushing self-criticism to spare. Many of their surrounding adults quantify success and worth through trophies, through test scores, through Facebook likes. Overtime, self value is learned and internalized through harmful words and the lack of support. Our youth our constantly being evaluated, judged, not deemed “not good enough” by bogus standards that are usually set by the adults around them. Why is the adolescent suicide rate at an all-time high? Why do 48% of LGBTQ youth admit to contemplating suicide? It’s because we have created a warped image of what happiness and success is supposed to look like.
God thrives when we encourage others. The Church is a place where the acceptance of others is a flourishing value that we hold sacred and share boldly. It’s worth noting, acceptance is not simply putting on a smile in front of others, it’s genuinely loving one another for being exactly who God has created each of us to be. Because God has gifted us with Grace upon Grace, we can be rest assured that this is not a test. A church that fully knows God’s mission for the world is a church where there are no red pens. Encouragement, love, and support is an ethos that creates a community that people want to be a part of. We are Christ-followers perpetually pointing to a future where there is no judgement, no hurtful rhetoric, and only love for one another.
“We all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Instead of failing, it’s “not yet.” God will do the work of ushering in the Kin-dom. All that is left for us to do is welcome all people, to embrace the people who society has wrongly deemed unworthy. On our small plot of land, here at 4700 South Main, we acknowledge our short-comings, embrace the call to love all people, and profess that we are all in this journey of faith together.
Not yet, but getter closer!
Pr. Lucas McSurley
Photo by Anton Sukhinov