CHEERS!

"Cheers!" said the milkman as we paid him and he went on his way. The word 'cheer' conveys the idea of brightening up a person's face by encouraging them, and don't we all need cheering up in a world that often seems cheerless? A policeman was trying to discourage a man from jumping off a bridge. "Cheer up," he said, "Life's worth living!" "You prove to me that it is," said the man. After a short debate they both jumped in! It's not much good trying to cheer people up if we have no message of hope. Empty words can often deepen their depression.

To a man who was a paralytic Jesus said, "Son, be of good cheer your sins are forgiven you." [ Matthew 9:2 ]. He then proved that he had power to do this by making him walk! Today many are paralysed by guilt and fear. They may even be blaming God for allowing them to make such a mess of their lives. They also torment themselves with those two cruel words, "If only!" To all such depressed, guilty people Jesus says, "Be of good cheer, for I did not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance." [ Matthew 9:13 ] By turning from what they know is wrong and by trusting in His death on the cross, they will find that He is still saying "Be of good cheer your sins are forgiven you." Forgiveness is the first step towards a meaningful and useful life. This does not mean that everything will go smoothly, in fact Jesus promised the opposite. He said, "In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." [ John 16:33 ] Because He has conquered death and is alive today, we can rely upon His power to see us through. "Cheers!"