3 Reasons to be a Kirby

I’ve been blessed to serve at First Baptist Watauga for a little more than 10 years now. We have so many great members that are a blessing in my life as well as in the life of my family. I know many ministers who have not had a similar experience, so I continually give thanks to the Lord for this great church.

One of our members is a retired minister named Kirby. Before Kirby was a faithful member at First Baptist Watauga, he faithfully served on staff at various churches throughout his career. Kirby is an intentional encourager.

Recently, I finished walking through a book with a student I’ve been discipling. This book by author, leadership coach, and entrepreneur, Boyd Bailey is titled, “Learning to Lead Like Jesus.” This is the second time I’ve read this book. Like panning for gold, I discovered new nuggets of truth throughout this second read.

As I read the chapter on leading with encouragement, I was immediately reminded of Kirby. As I thought about all the ways Kirby has been an encouragement to our staff, to my family, and to me personally, I thought to myself, “I want to be a Kirby to others.”

When I’ve talked to Kirby about his intentional encouragement of others around him, he simply said, “Many years ago, I decided that when my time was up [to retire from ministry], I would be the kind of man that I hope and pray I have become [an encourager].” Because of Kirby’s intentionality in his encouragement, he has certainly been a success in this desire to become an encourager.

There are 3 reasons I want to be a Kirby and I believe these are reasons you should want to be a Kirby, too.

3 REASONS TO BE A KIRBY

1. Everyone could use a Kirby in his or her life.

2020 has been… well, a year. Between the pandemic, the job losses, the job stressors, the political division, the hate-fueled social media posts and arguments, there are plenty of things to be discouraged by. While this year has not been nearly as bad for me as it has been for others, I have had my own share of discouraging moments.

Proverbs 16:24 reminds us that “Pleasant words are a honeycomb: sweet to the taste and healthy to the body.”

In discouraging times, everyone could use the encouragement. The sweet taste of pleasant words can be uplifting in the most difficult of moments. And even if someone seems to have it all together, an encouraging word can provide the exact motivation to help them to keep moving forward.

2. Being a Kirby means walking in obedience to Jesus.

In Matthew 22:36-40, we see Jesus being challenged to answer the question, “What’s the greatest commandment?” Jesus responds by saying, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”

The second greatest command, right under loving God, is to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

Do you appreciate encouragement? Is it a blessing to you? When we encourage others, we love them the way we would want to be loved. And in doing so, we walk in obedience to this very command Jesus points us to.

3. Being a Kirby actually means being like Jesus.

One of my favorite passages of scripture is Philippians 2:5-8, which says:

“Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the form of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on the cross.”

Jesus is the epitome of humility. From his throne in Heaven, he didn’t just command mankind to be humble. He literally and physically left his place in Heaven, entered the world he created, and became one of his own creations. In doing so, he modeled humility for us.

Offering an encouraging word is an act of humility. It means that I don’t have a self-centered focus. An encouraging word tells the receiver, “I see you.” As Paul commands, this attitude of humility is one we should all strive to adopt, for it is one of Christ-likeness.

Who has been a Kirby [an encourager] in your life?

Who can you be a Kirby [an encourager] to, today?