Encouragement is such a powerful influence on a person’s motivation. It takes about 10 positives to neutralize one negative, but we live in a world full of negativity. That translates into an even greater need to encourage one another.

In the book of Hebrews, the Jewish people who had professed faith in Christ experienced consequences from within their culture. Because of negative pressure — and even persecution — many of these believers were falling away from their profession of faith and returning to the law of the Old Covenant. Even those who did not fall away were likely feeling the temptation to turn away from openly following Christ. Some of them habitually neglected the gathering of Christians, which can be an initial step in falling away from the faith — and even into apostasy.

Hebrews 10:25 says, “Not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more, as you see the day drawing near.” Some translations use the word “exhorting one another” in this verse, but the force of encouraging is present also in the word exhort.

Our denomination faces challenges. Easily, more than half of our churches are declining or plateaued. Pastors feel the pressure and pain of this reality in their lives and families. Too often, a church seems determined to die rather than grow — because it is easier to die. A pastor might have solid training, a disciple-making commitment and good leadership skills and still find himself in a position where the church is stuck in a plateaued position or plunging into a downward spiral. In these situations, many pastors become discouraged. Yet what they need is encouragement. God seems to spell success “f-a-i-t-h-f-u-l.” In fact, He requires His stewards to be faithful. As followers of Jesus, we may not always be successful by the world’s standards, but we can always be faithful to Christ and His Word. Faithful pastors need the encouragement and the committed help of the congregation if a declining or plateaued church is able to grow again and become spiritually healthy.

Church members in a stalled or dying church also need encouragement. That is why Hebrews 10:25 is so relevant for our times. Encouragement cannot take place in isolation but should occur in the gathering of believers. In fact, the encouragement in our churches should be so genuine and God-motivated that it inspires the members to become greater witnesses outside the walls of the church building.

The failure to encourage one another can be devastating to a church. We need God, and we need each other. Someone once said that encouragement “is to a group of people what wind is to a sail boat — it moves you forward.”

When we encourage someone, we literally inspire that person with hope, confidence and courage. It is likely that more than half of those who read this column are pastors or church members in a declining or plateaued church. What can you do? To borrow from a counseling technique: Accept what is real, make realistic goals, and work toward the goals. An unknown writer said a bend in the road “is not the end of the road — unless you fail to make the turn.”

The Holman Christian Standard translation in Hebrews 3:13 says, “Encourage each other daily.” Encouraging other believers does not mean we compromise truth, overlook sinful practices or embrace a pop psychology that is going nowhere eternally. Rather, it means we love God and the family of God enough to support them in the journey of faith. At the end of our time, our goal is to hear from Jesus, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Today, we need to give and receive encouragement more than ever.