Life-Giving or Life-Draining?

A couple recently stopped by the church office, and when they left, we felt so encouraged. It wasn’t just their kind words of encouragement but also the joy in their hearts that just overflowed to everyone else in the room. Even the next day, Eddy and I were talking about their visit being like a “breath of fresh air”.

And that made me stop and think. What do people feel when I walk into a room? We all have a choice. We can choose to be life-giving or life-draining. Proverbs 17:22 says, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.” The Message Translation says it like this, “A cheerful disposition is good for your health, gloom and doom leave you bone-tired.” Let’s be honest, right now, there has been enough of “gloom and doom”. People are truly “bone-tired”. Personally, I want to be “life-giving”. Jesus came to give us abundant life, and I think that means a life of joy. We may not be able to change the whole world, but we can certainly make changes in our world, and that can begin be being a “life-giving” Christian. Who can you bring life to this week?