ENCOURAGE YOURSELF

Have you thanked Him?
Have you praised Him?
Have you made it your priority to agree and cooperate with Him today?
Have you taken that deep breath and listened for what He has for you today?
1 Timothy 2:1 (The Message)
The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know.

Ever been in an environment where the negativity is almost palpable?
Is that your workplace?
Maybe your classmates are the type that just drone on and on about how “bad” things are. Maybe you have that family member who grabs your ear and before you know it they have convinced you that the world is about to end.

For these the glass is most always "half empty".
I will be honest I don't like being around that vibe. And if you are like me, you long for someone to come along with a different perspective; maybe a positive thought. You mutter to yourself, “I could use one of those glass half full folks about now.”

But you look around and all you see is "gloom sprinkled with smattering of doom".
What should we do?
ENCOURAGE OURSELVES that's what! 
We don’t need a happy or pepping message to turn the tide! 
We don’t need a self-help guru spouting all is well.
Nope!

You have heard me say this before. When discouragement and negativity surround us, let's RAISE OUR GAZE! And encourage ourselves in the LORD!

Let's grab our WORD and let it speak to us! There is a positive punch in those pages. Let IT clear that negative air and inject hope and optimism into our day and environment.

Feeling discouraged because of perceived lack? 
He answered me, “I am all you need. I give you My loving-favor
2 Corinthians 12:9

Lethargic from feeling “left out”?
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light
1 Peter 2:9

Caught in a spiral of sulk and sullen?
...pray that God, the source of all hope, will infuse your lives with an abundance of joy and peace in the midst of your faith so that your hope will overflow through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Romans 15:13

The reality is that we live in a culture that feeds on the negative. We love the scandal. We delight in the “bad news” for it sells copy and boosts the Nielsen. And if we aren’t careful that negativity can wash over us seeking to pull us under with it. 
Don’t let it. 
Encourage yourself daily in what GOD says about "things", what GOD says about provision, what GOD says about joy, what GOD says about happiness. He has the right positive promise for every negative circumstance! He will ENCOURAGE you!

Blessed be God—He heard me praying. He proved he’s on my side…Psalm 28:7

So, if you have found yourself knee deep in negativity this morning, break out your Word and…
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly
Colossians 3:16 
And ENCOURAGE YOURSELF!

I love you all…
OPPORTUNITIES for HOPE