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The power of encouragement (2)
'Pleasant words are...health to the bones.' Proverbs 16:24
One day a Headteacher called in three teachers and said, 'You three are the finest in the system, so we're giving you ninety high-IQ pupils to see what you can do with them.' At the end of the year the pupils achieved thirty percent more than the other pupils in the school.
The Head called the three teachers in and said, 'I've a confession to make. You didn't have ninety of the most promising pupils: they were run-of-the-mill. We picked them at random and gave them to you.' The teachers naturally concluded that their exceptional teaching skills must have been responsible for the pupils' great progress.
'I've another confession,' said the Head. 'You're not the brightest teachers; your names were the first three drawn out of the hat.' So, why did those pupils and teachers perform at such a level?
Because they were encouraged to believe they could! This idea of believing is right at the heart of what it means to be a Christian. You see, your relationship with Jesus is a two-way street. It doesn't just involve you singing songs and saying prayers to Him so that He doesn't get insecure about how great He is!
No, you see, nobody knows you like Jesus, He sees the amazing potential you have, He put it there before you were even born! He's constantly cheering you on with shouts of 'YES, YOU CAN!' Can you hear Him right now?
written by Bob Gass
'Pleasant words are...health to the bones.' Proverbs 16:24
One day a Headteacher called in three teachers and said, 'You three are the finest in the system, so we're giving you ninety high-IQ pupils to see what you can do with them.' At the end of the year the pupils achieved thirty percent more than the other pupils in the school.
The Head called the three teachers in and said, 'I've a confession to make. You didn't have ninety of the most promising pupils: they were run-of-the-mill. We picked them at random and gave them to you.' The teachers naturally concluded that their exceptional teaching skills must have been responsible for the pupils' great progress.
'I've another confession,' said the Head. 'You're not the brightest teachers; your names were the first three drawn out of the hat.' So, why did those pupils and teachers perform at such a level?
Because they were encouraged to believe they could! This idea of believing is right at the heart of what it means to be a Christian. You see, your relationship with Jesus is a two-way street. It doesn't just involve you singing songs and saying prayers to Him so that He doesn't get insecure about how great He is!
No, you see, nobody knows you like Jesus, He sees the amazing potential you have, He put it there before you were even born! He's constantly cheering you on with shouts of 'YES, YOU CAN!' Can you hear Him right now?
written by Bob Gass
