Some of the great success stories of history have followed a simple word of encouragement. There was a young man who dreamed of being a writer. He had a small government job when times were hard. He and his wife barely made ends meet but he held on to his dreams. "One of these days, I will write my book and then things will be better. His lovely and caring wife would smile and she would say.. "Yes.. I know.. I believe you will do it. "

One day came but it was not the day young Nate expected. One day, his boss came and told him that he would no longer be needed. Nate had lost his job. As he walked home, he had no idea what to tell his wife. What would they do? His wife met him the door and young Nate began to tell her of his heartbreak. Even as the words came out of his mouth, "I have lost my job. I don't know what we'll do.."

His wife, in a joyous voice, cried out, "Wonderful!"

Nate was stunned. Didn't she hear him? Did she misunderstand? He mumbled out, "What?"

"Now," she said triumphantly, "you can write your book!"

"Well, yes," replied Nathaniel, with absolutely no confidence, "and what will we live on while I am writing the book?" To his amazement, she opened a drawer and pulled out a substantial amount of money.

"Where on earth did you get that money?" he asked.

"I have always known you were a man destined to do great things," she told him. "I knew that someday you would write a great novel. So every week, out of the money you gave me for housekeeping, I saved just a little bit. Here is enough to last us for at least one year."

Out of the trust and confidence that Sophia had in her husband, Nathaniel Hawthorne, was born the one of America's great pieces of literature, "The Scarlet Letter."

We all need a little encouragement..

There are times when everyone needs a little encouragement. But if we want to really change people, if we desire to see someone become everything that they can possibly be, we need to encourage them all the time. Sophia made a difference in Nathaniel's life because she believed in him and because she "told" him she believed in him.

We need to be more encouraging to everyone we meet. We need to let people know that we see the best in them. That will begin to change people. We can make a better world by beginning to encourage someone to be a better person. No wonder the Bible teaches us.. To encourage one another.

Try it this week.. Make it a point to encourage people and you will see the difference!