I’m not sure if the quote is true, but I’ve seen Eleanor Roosevelt’s wisdom around all over the place. Whether she made said it or not, this advice is golden:

Do one thing every day that scares you.”

When it comes to your life’s work, there is nothing more important. Whether you are an artist, a pastor, an accountant, or a doctor, nothing will define your legacy like doing hard things.

Because we’re all tempted to do what’s easy. And it’s not just social media. Of course, scouring Facebook is a temptation. Hours are lost in the vapor of Instagram. But you can’t just blame social media. You have to own the fact that you are scared. You have to own the fact that you’re not doing the most important things.

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Today’s post is a life update of sorts. I wanted to let you in on a transition my family and I are taking.

Me, my wife Emily, and our two kids (Tyler & Eliana) are about to embark on a season of adventure – literally. We will be hitting the road and traveling the country for an unforeseen amount of time.

Crazy, right?

Well, we are excited to adventure as a family. This is something we’ve dreamed about for quite some time – to simplify, see the country, experience life, step out of our comfort zones, and to travel. It just feels like the right time with our kids being 3 & 4 years old (or maybe it’s the worst time, haha).

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We begin our lives with big vision, don’t we?

Think about your answer to the most common question when you were a kid: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” When you’re 6 years old, you don’t consider the cost of tuition, the extra years of graduate school, or how difficult it is to make the NFL draft.

You are going to be an astronaut. You’re going to be a firefighter. You will be the next Quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers and lead your team to yet another Super Bowl Championship. There’s no doubt or debate. Consider it done.

For those of us in ministry, it’s a similar start. The world is ours for the taking. Nothing is impossible.

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I’m going to go out on a limb and say that everyone wants to make a difference with their life.

You want to matter. You want to use the breathe you’ve been given to speak encouragement. You want to use the time you have to make a dent in the universe. No one wakes up and says, “What’s the fastest way to waste my life? I think I’ll do that today.”

Of course not. But the truth is, many of us are wasting our lives. We might not be intentional about it, but that’s the point. Without a life of intention, you have a life at random. Without specific direction, you have no direction.

It’s as if we’re letting life happen to us rather than making life happen.

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As I look back on my life, I’m not sure where I’d be without the encouragement of others.

I may never have written a song if a college professor had never saw something in me and spoke into my life.

I may never have led worship if my childhood friend never said, “You can do this.”

And I don’t know about you, but I want to be the kind of person who champions others.

I don’t want to be the one who recognizes everyone’s faults and is quick to point them out. I’d rather be known for releasing people into doing what they didn’t think they can do.

People are starving for this. Maybe it stems from the fact that they weren’t affirmed growing up. Whatever the case, it’s time to step up our encouragement game. Especially this Thanksgiving season, be reminded about appreciating your team. And be reminded of the influence your words carry. Of course, you shouldn’t just be thankful when it’s Thanksgiving.

Make appreciation your job. Breathe encouragement.

The reason I am where I am today because of specific people who encouraged me. They could have remained silent but they spoke what they saw.

I love how Hillsong Worship does this on social media. Because they embody this truth. They are relentless encouragers and constantly spotlight their people. It’s evident that they are proud of the people on their team.

And I want to foster that culture in my church.

A question I get asked a lot is, “What Does a Worship Leader do all day? What should my day to day job involve?” I’m a firm believer that this is a big part of it. It’s working with people – encouraging, challenging, building up, and discipling those people to because better than you and help launch them into the best ministry of their lives.

3 Ways to Foster a Culture of Encouragement

Let’s make this practical:

1.Turn Tasks into Prayer – Planning Center isn’t just a template to get slots filled for your services. It’s a platform for prayer. Every name you add to every service isn’t just data entry. Allow your heart to engage in prayer.

2. Place “Encourage someone” on Your To-do List – When was the last time you picked up the phone to encourage someone on your team? Not because you needed something, but just to express appreciation? I can’t tell you how far this will go in creating a healthy culture. As a leader, your words carry weight. They are more powerful than you think.

3. Schedule One-on-Ones – It’s silly. The busier we get, the more we seem to want to automate our schedules and just crank through the day. For creative work, this is needed. You need to be alone, carving out the mental space to do your best thinking and uninterrupted creating. However, as leaders in the church, it’s actually less about us getting our stuff done and more about getting things done through others. It’s about equipping the saints for the work of ministry.

The more you embody this, the more your team will. The more you do this, the more it will spread into the fiber of your team’s culture.

So here’s the question: Who are you equipping today?

Let’s talk about it in the comments.

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