Affirmations
On Friday, we spent time affirming one another at our last biosphere. It was really cool because though we had done a little bit of this lately, but it was like a legit session of encouragement that night. I realized the power and potency in exhorting each other. First of all, it’s nice to hear good things from people that you love and respect. The words from those special people carry significant weight. Second, affirmations break off lies, dispel doubts and it speaks destiny and life into people. Sometimes the positive things about a person seem obvious to others, but that person is unsure about it himself. Affirmation is like highlighting the good things, so they are no longer hidden or obscured. Hello affirmations, and bye bye doubts. Also, hearing encouragment made me want to continue developing in those areas even more. It’s great to be surrounded by people that can push you into becoming the person that God has called you to be. Third, I personally felt really loved when my brothers and sisters were giving genuine encouragement from the heart. They saw these precious nuggets of treasure inside me that I thought no one would notice. I’m a pretty goofy guy, but the fact that they knew me beyond that and took me seriously where it mattered showed that they cared about me. Their appreciation really validated me.
Freely that we receive, freely we must give. That’s the beauty of it. When I receive affirmation, I want to give it out and it’s not just an end of the year kind of thing. I saw an image of all of us placing building blocks under one another so that the level we all stood at was getting higher and higher. Cultural barriers to openly showing affection and encouragement need to be broken. It’s unhealthy that affirmation is held back for whatever reason. Building each other up is so necessary because we need each other! It’s not supposed to be an individual struggle, but being a family that sustains its members and constantly grows and expands.
