God’s desires for us to be encouragers of people (our family, fellow church members, co-workers, neighbors, the cashier at the grocery store…anyone). This is why Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:11 to “encourage each other and build each other up.” So we can’t dismiss helping others through encouragement because we don’t feel comfortable talking to others or because we just don’t feel like it. The Body of Christ would be incomplete, powerless, and lacking the strength to overcome adversity if we were all remiss in our responsibility to build up others. We would also miss out on the blessing that comes from encouraging others.