Becoming a Woman of Encouragement and Influence (part 4)

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Encourage the exhausted,

and strengthen the feeble.

Isaiah 35:3

In Becoming a Woman of Encouragement and Influence (part 3) we looked at who, when, why, and how we are to encourage. Today we will do the same for strengthen.

  • How do we strengthen?
  • When do we strengthen?
  • Who do we strengthen?
  • Why do we strengthen?

The first time the word strengthen is used in the NASB is in Deuteronomy 3:28

But charge Joshua and encourage him and strengthen him, for he shall go across at the head of this people, and he will give them as an inheritance the land which you will see.

The word strengthen in the Hebrew is amets and it means

  • confirm, be courageous of good courage, steadfastly minded, strong, stronger, establish, fortify, harden,
  • to be alert, physically (on foot) or mentally (in courage)

As I was continuing my word search study on this word “amets” I read this verse in the book of Nahum…

The one who scatters has come up against you. Man the fortress, watch the road; strengthen your back, summon all your strength.

Nahum 2:1

Something hit me when me I read this verse. What I saw was that we are to encourage from the front, but we are to strengthen from the back.

Just think of when we are teaching a child to walk. We grab hold of the hands of the child and walk behind them as they tightly grip our fingers. We support them as they learn to put one foot in front of the other, but once we know they can do it, we move to the front and call out to them to come to us as we encourage and cheer them on with every step. If they falter, if they hesitate, if they began to doubt, we are right there to snatch and seize and get them steady and moving again.

Encourage from the front and strengthen from the back, because when you know that you know that someone has your back… that in itself strengthens.

Behind Her

Strengthen from Behind

From that day on, half of my servants carried on the work while half of them held the spears, the shields, the bows and the breastplates; and the captains were behind the whole house of Judah.

Nehemiah 4:16

When we go back to the book of Nehemiah and the Scriptures that we poured over in part 2 of this series, let us remember the discouragement of the people. They could not move forward because they had no one strengthening them from behind and no one encouraging them from the front. They were stuck in the rut of their rubbish. The only words they could hear were the mockings of the nations around them. The people were paralyzed by their circumstances. They couldn’t even look up to remember their God. They were demoralized. They were caught in the trap of their false reality.

They needed someone to step into their false reality and wake them up and strengthen them. Nehemiah was that someone. Nehemiah could be that someone. Nehemiah could face whatever was in front of him, because he knew someone had his back. When Nehemiah first heard of what was going on in Jerusalem he too was discouraged and downcast, but when King Artaxerxes told Nehemiah to go and let him know that he had his full support. Nehemiah was able to walk into Jerusalem ready to encourage and strengthen others.

And now here in Jerusalem, once the people knew that someone had their back, once they knew that the captains were behind the whole house of Judah, the people got refocused, recharged, and were ready to work.

Ladies, who needs to know that you have their back? Does your husband need to know that you have his back? Do your children need to know that you have their back? What about in the ministry? What about at work? What about school?

If you are leader in a position of authority, do those serving under you know that you have their back?

Do you need to know that someone has your back?

Perhaps you are sitting here reading this and you feel stranded and alone. Perhaps it appears that no one who has your back. Oh precious one, never forget that God has you back!

You have enclosed me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me.

Psalm 139:5

*******

At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.

2 Timothy 4:16-18

The Greek word used for strengthened in 2 Timothy 4:17 is endunamoó and it means properly, to impart ability (make able); empowered, fill with power, strengthen, make strong.

When no one else is there, God is. If you know, that you know, that you know, that God has called you to the task, He is sufficient to empower you, to support you, to strengthen you. He is enough.

This word for strengthen is only used seven times in the New Testament. This strength can only come from God. Endunamoó is used in Act 9:22, Romans 4:20, Ephesians 6:10, Philippians 4:13, 1 Timothy 1:12, 2 Timothy 2:1, and the above verse 2 Timothy 4:17. Do you need strengthened beloved, take these verses and write them down, learn them, and cry out to the Lord with them.

Now let’s get back to woman to woman, to woman to husband, to woman to child, to woman to anyone you see that needs strengthened.

The first time the word strengthen is used in the New Testament in the NASB is in Luke 22:32. This word in the Greek is stérizó and this is the word for strengthen that relates to us strengthening one another. This is the word that relates to us pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.

It’s definition:

(from stēringks, “a support that fixes, plants down”; akin to hístēmi, “to stand,” having a duplication of the primitive Gk root/sta, “to make stand”)

  • properly, set fast (fix); give support to secure (firmly establish); solidly plant (which eliminates vacillation).
  • I fix firmly, direct myself towards, generally met: I buttress, prop, support; I strengthen, establish.

The first time this Greek word is used in the New Testament is in Luke 9:51, where it is translated as determined. In Luke 9:51 we see that even Jesus had to set His face toward what God called Him to do. This is where we have to step in faith in what we know. This is our responsibility, either within ourselves or to offer to others.

As we look at the context of the use of this word strengthen, in Luke 22:32 we learn we are to:

Strengthen from Failures

but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.

Luke 22:32

Peter is about to epically fail. He is about to deny Christ. He is about to turn his back on the one he just swore to defend to his own death. Jesus, in full knowledge of this failure, says “when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.”

In other words beloved, whether you are the one who failed or you see someone who has failed, God is not through with you or them. It doesn’t matter the failure, God can use it. God can also use you to strengthen others. Not even our worst mistakes, our most grotesque sin, our deepest pit is wasted by our Redeemer. He can and will redeem anything and anyone.

The last time this word for strengthen is used is in the book of Revelation

I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God

Revelation 2:3

Beloved, where ever you are, what ever you have, if you have breathe in your body, God is not through with you. When you see that someone else, where ever they are, whatever they have done, if they have breathe in their body, God is not through with them yet. Strengthen what remains.

I don’t care how far you have strayed. I don’t care how far they have strayed. I don’t care what you have done. As long as there is light, there is life. Wake up. Rise from the dead. For you have been created and called for a purpose that is bigger than you.

Set your face. Direct yourself to the face of Christ. Put one foot in front of the other and never forget that if no one else is there to strengthen you from behind… God is.

Lastly we need to know that we are to

Strengthen from Patience

Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing right at the door.

James 5:7-9

Be patient beloved. Be patient with yourself, and be patient with others. Stop griping and complaining because someone isn’t “getting it” or you are not “getting it”. I know the frustration that comes when you can clearly see the choices someone needs to make, but they don’t. I know the irritation and even fear that can come when you see someone you care about repeatedly turning down the wrong path even when you know that they know the narrow way. Be patient… and pray.

Someone may not be getting some where as quickly as you want them to, or even in the way that you think they should, but that doesn’t mean that God is not at work. Strengthen from patience. Love is patient (1 Corinthians 13:4).

So…

How do we strengthen?

  • We strengthen with patience.

When do we strengthen?

  • We strengthen anytime we see someone who needs it.

Who do we strengthen?

  • We strengthen those who have failed, those who are failing, those who have fallen, those who are getting back up.

Why do we strengthen?

  • We strengthen because we are at war.

In war there are wounds. There are times of victory and their are times of defeat. We all grow weary. We all need an Aaron and Hur to hold up our arms. We all need to know that someone has our back. The battle wages on beloved, but the God of angel armies is by our side. He goes before and behind. He is the One who strengthens and encourages. If we are to be imitators of Him, then we too are to be women who encourage and strengthen.

 

Becoming a Woman of Encouragement and Influence (wrapping it up)

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