Ever had one of THOSE days, or should I say daze, when your Plan A becomes Plan B and then slides down the list to Plan C? If not, I’d really like to meet you!

As your day begins to unravel, you try to regroup instead of throwing your hands up in despair. Things don’t improve when you discover someone drank the last of the milk and neglected to let you know!

You make a hurried trip to the nearest convenience store, intending to be in and out of there in record time. After grabbing a gallon of milk, you hurry to make your purchase….oh no!! You find yourself trapped in the middle of the aisle with no polite means of escape. You’ve been intercepted by Gertie Gloom.

You know Gertie…she’s one of those people you try to avoid. Her cup is always half empty, and has a leak in the bottom. If you comment on the beautiful sunshine outside, she’ll inform you how high the pollen count is that day. You try again to strike a positive note in the conversation, and tell her she’s looking lovely; she immediately begins to tell you of all her aches and pains, physical ailments, and how last night’s dinner upset her digestive system. (So much more than you wanted to know)

By the time you finally get to your car, you are exasperated with yourself for getting ‘trapped’ one more time. However, you can’t help being thankful that her husband wasn’t there with her. Donnie and Gertie are a dominating tag-team of Doom and Gloom!

What a difference it would have made for you had she simply offered a word of encouragement, given you a hug and let you be on your way.

Every single day we each have the opportunity to impact other people’s lives. We can be Lifters, and encourage them; or we can be Levelers, and pull them down.

Consider what a smile can do. When you actually make eye contact with someone, and give them a genuine smile, you can see an immediate change in their countenance. You’ve taken time to acknowledge their presence, rather than passing them by as if they are invisible.

We can make such a difference with our words. According to Proverbs 18:21, “Life and Death are in the power of the tongue.”

Each of us can speak into someone’s life and help shape their future.

We can choose to be critical, find fault, play the ‘Blame Game’, and laugh at their dreams. We have just leveled them with words of Death! Our words have caused them to lose hope, to not believe in themselves, and to convince them they can never amount to anything. They will probably turn out to be just like the Leveler speaking out the negative.

However, there is such joy in speaking words of Life! We can help another walk away from their past, look beyond the immediate and embrace a future of promise…all through our words.

Another very important fact to keep in mind: the words you speak are heard first by your own inner ear. What you say goes down into your own heart, and affects you as well as those who hear you.

You can be a Lifter, and make a dramatic difference in someone’s life. Let it become your lifestyle to speak words of Life and offer hope.

Here, in the Lifting Place, you will find words of encouragement; some will cause laughter, perhaps some will bring tears. This will not be a place that causes you to lose hope, or ask if there’s any use in pushing on.

My desire is to provide a place where you can find a word of encouragement that will warm your heart and give you a smile.

Look for an opportunity to be a Lifter today………..