Greetings,

Week 8 of the lockdown has been the most heartbroken in a personal way.

This past Tuesday the Lord called my mom, Mary Burger, home. My mom was 93-years old. My mom, in short, loved Jesus as her Lord and Savior and God used her in not only being a very loving and caring mother but also as a loving and caring servant of the Lord to the many she met in her 93-years of life. So, as not put the focus of the weekly prayer request on my mom and keep it on the SOCPM here is a link to a Facebook post to I posted about my mom.

There is still no word or even rumors of when the prisons will reopen to volunteers but through the gracious hearts of Chaplain Thomas (Dixon) and Chaplain McClimans (Sheridan), I’m able to send reoccurring encouragement letters on a reoccurring basis.

This week I once again used my pastor’s weekly Wednesday night message on the ‘Becoming an Encourager’ as the backdrop. For some reason the first six minutes there is just a splash screen of my church’s logo.

I’ve been debating whether to include the whole letter in these weekly newsletters. Some may read all of it others for a personal reason. My plan is sometime this week is to develop a new page on the SOCPM website where I can post the letters of encouragement and then include a link to the page in the newsletter.

However, until I complete that task here is this week's letter.
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Greeting to all my students, my heart lifts you daily in payer. He has again put in my heart to write you with a focus on His Word during this difficult time which has been a personal struggle for all of us in various ways. In times of those struggles, we can be beset with discouragement.

My pastor Joe Thorn’s message this past Wednesday was ‘The Ministry of Encouragement - Becoming an Encourager.’ I’ve done my best to extract from my notes some key points that will be an encouragement to you in your struggles and discouragement and will share some Scripture for you to read and meditate upon.

We experiencing discouragement not just because of COVID-19 but people sometimes say hurtful things, we are brought low because of unfair criticism or sometimes truth but not told in a tactful way or when we fail and our plans don’t come together as we had hoped.

Thus every Christian is called to a ministry of encouragement. It does not mean we have to a super giddy, bubbly type personality. Encouragement in a Biblical context it is not a compliment or flattery. Christian encouragement is the application of God’s Word to one another and our lives and our experiences for the sake of building up one another in the faith. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 tells us. ‘Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.’

We are called to faith and obedience, seeking to comfort the downcast and the discouraged through the ministry of the Word.

What does that look like? It looks like Christ. Through exhortation to encourage. Challenge, and urge people to follow Christ in very practical ways. As sinners living in a fallen world among other sinners in a creation that has been afflicted with the presence of sin and evil know what it is like to be downcast, discouraged. The heart becomes heavy and our joy begins to fade.

What we need is a good word, not just a positive word or superficial word, but a word of truth that comforts the soul. We need the ministry of the word through a regular ongoing fellowship of the saints to help us through those times. 1 Thessalonians 5:14 reads, ‘And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. At times we need to say the hard things, call for someone to repent, but to do with compassion and patience.

The ministry of encouragement bears a fruit that lasts; in life change, heart change, soul change, a transformation in our minds, our emotions, and our wills. Fruit born through the ministry of encouragement protects us from sin and temptation, will strengthen our faith and produce joy in our lives

Where might we need these Fruit in our lives? When we can begin to have hardened hearts due to sin. Hebrews 3:12–13 (ESV): 12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. 13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Our faith can become weak, fragile, small. We need people to encourage us when we are discouraged when we can become lazy and need people to cheer us on. When we are weak we are tested in our capacity to rejoice in the lord. When we are lazy or wayward, failing, joy is at a minimum

To comfort the downcast you got to love them, seek to know what they are struggling with, then apply scripture to their struggle. We need to call one another to faith and repentance by taking the sin of those you love seriously. Not to point out every sin but when we see rebellion, lack of repentance. They need to trust God, turn away from sin, to delight in God’s will and ways.

We are called to remind each other of God’s person, who God is. Discouragement often comes from a misunderstanding or forgetfulness of who God is just, patient, loving, He delights over His people, He is holy, He hates sin.

You can’t leave God and His Word out of the ministry of encouragement. We need to point one another to God’s promises. His blessings extended to us despite our being undeserving. He promises to forgive our sins, for all things to work for our good, ever leaves us, or forsake us.

1 Thessalonians 5:9–10 (ESV): 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. God has set us apart from the rest, not because we are good and better but because He is good and has mercy on the undeserving he has taken us out of wrath and into salvation and now we are waiting for Christ to come back.

Acts 4:36–37 (ESV): 36 Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37 sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Encouragers are not optimists, but they are hopeful, believe the promises of God, and look forward to what God is going to do. Encouragers are not flatterers. Encouragers don’t ignore pain, failure, and lost but they see them in the light of God’s grace and promises. Encouragers are not critical but do hold others accountable. Encouragers don’t gloss over sin. They do forgive and know change is possible. Encouragers see God at work and point others to that God.

You will struggle to be an encourager if you don’t see God if you don’t dive in Scripture and let it be your lens. Encouragers share their stories and hear the story of others. Encouragers love the church they pray for the church. Most important encouragers love Jesus Christ and the Word of God and surrender to the work and leading of the Holy Spirit.

My own summation on being the ministry of encouragement and becoming an encourager is during this whole COVID-19 and all the other discouragements we encounter can be a challenge to be an encourager with optimism. Here is a paragraph from an article on optimism.

God designed us to live with hope. Psalm 43:5 says, “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” Optimism is a choice. When we choose to trust God for everything, we can rest in His promises to take care of us the way He sees fit (Philippians 4:19; Luke 12:30–31). We can “cast our care upon him” (1 Peter 5:7), “let our requests be made known unto God” (Philippians 4:6), and accept His “peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7). Knowing that we have a loving heavenly Father who desires to care for us and provide for us should give every child of God a reason for true optimism (Matthew 6:8; Luke 12:29–31).

Additional Scripture: 1 Chronicles 22:13; Psalm 31:24, 56:3; Isaiah 40:31; John 14:1; Romans 8:31; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 2 Corinthians 4:17-18; Galatians 6:9; Ephesians 4:1-3; 2 Thessalonians 3:13; 2 Timothy 1:6-7; James 4:7; 1 Peter 1:6-9, 5:7.

For those of you who have put your faith and trust in the life, death, burial, and resurrection in Jesus Christ and not of yourself you have another promise from God’s Word, Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. John 6:47 NKJV. But I remind you that promise is only those who have placed their faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If you haven’t or unsure please read the Gospel of John but before doing so ask God to open your heart, soul, and mind to your need for Jesus Christ.

To Him and only Him be the glory in ALL things.

Loving and missing you.

Scott
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As I already mentioned a warm and much appreciated thanks to the chaplains.

I also thank you for your continued support in prayer for the students.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 ESV

To Him be the glory in ALL things and to Him alone!

Scott Kalas
Soldiers of Christ Prison Ministries