Stirring One Another Toward Love - Stuart Sneddon
Hebrews 10:24 urges us to “consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” It’s a beautiful invitation, but also a challenging one. Because if we’re honest, encouragement doesn’t always flow naturally.
Contrary to popular belief, I am not always in the “right” mood, sometimes something has happened in my day, sometimes I'm not feeling 100% and sometimes I just have woken up on the wrong side of the bed! And I know I’m not alone. We all have those days when our patience is thin, our energy is low, or our hearts feel a little bruised.
Yet this is exactly where Hebrews 10:24 speaks with such gentle wisdom. The verse doesn’t assume we will always feel ready to encourage others. Instead, it calls us to consider, to pause, reflect, and choose love with intention. Encouragement, it seems, is less about mood and more about mission.
Encouragement as a Shared Calling: The early church understood something we often forget, faith is not a solo journey. We are shaped, strengthened, and sustained in community. When one of us is weary, another can lift us. When one of us is celebrating, others can join in. When one of us is struggling to see God’s goodness, someone else can remind us of it.
Encouragement is not a grand gesture; it’s a daily rhythm. A text message. A prayer whispered for someone. A smile offered even when we’re tired. A willingness to show up, imperfectly, honestly, faithfully.
Choosing Love on the Hard Days: On the days when we feel low, God doesn’t ask us to pretend. He simply invites us to lean on His strength instead of our own. Sometimes the most powerful encouragement we give comes from a place of vulnerability: “I’m not at my best today, but I’m still choosing love.”
And when we do that, something beautiful happens. Our small acts of kindness become seeds of hope in someone else’s life. Our willingness to show up becomes a testimony of God’s grace at work in us.