Read: Philippians 1:3-11

Encouragement and humility are two of the greatest virtues in life.  Not only do they lift other people up, but they lift our spirits as well.  In the book of Philippians in the Bible Paul shares these virtues and others in various ways.  Take the time this week to read the whole book of Philippians to appreciate the full scope of joy, encouragement, and thanksgiving that Paul writes about.

As I considered those virtues of encouragement and humility, I remembered an email I recently received that said: The six most important words are, “I admit that I was wrong!”  The five most important words are, “You did a great job.”  The four most important words are, “What do you think?”  The three most important words are, “May I help?” The two most important words are, “Thank You!”  The most important word is, “We.” And the least important word is, “I”.

In verse 6 of Phillipians chapter 1 Paul says, “Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”  So often we get caught up in the needs that we have as individuals and forget about the needs of those whom God places in our path each day.  Paul encourages us in that verse to remember that we are called to bring about good things in life and speak positive words of encouragement to each other.  Those words flow out of our relationship with Jesus Christ and they can also be a wonderful testimony of his love and concern for others.

Paul says, “The fruit of righteousness” comes through Jesus Christ.  Let’s remember those important words and put the focus on others instead of ourselves.  As we read the New Testament we realize that this is how Jesus lived.  His humility and his ministry of encouragement to others is a great example for us to follow.