Building One Another  

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.

I Thessalonians 5:11

The Job 4 Test – Do You Belittle or Build Up?

Dear Friend –

A friend of Job said something quite remarkable to him, “Your words put people on their feet." Job 4:4

That marvelous word leads us to the Job 4 Test: Do your words knock people off their feet or put people on their feet? Do your words belittle or build up?

To belittle, a word coined by Thomas Jefferson, means to “make little” in the eyes of others, to put down, to scorn.

To build up is to encourage, impart courage and affirm the dignity of others.

We live in a day in which people of good will find themselves drawn onto sides that belittle each other and make no attempt to find common ground, much less to build up one another, yet we know what happens to a house divided.

Do not let any rotten talk come out of your mouths,” Ephesians 4:29

Therefore encourage one another and build one another up. I Thess. 5:11*

Scripture is blunt about this! Put people on their feet. Don’t belittle but be an encourager!

Joy to you - E. Stanley Ott​

Copyright 2025 E. Stanley Ott​

*Scripture from ESV

1. Think about your own recent conversations - online or in-person. What the character of the conversation on that belittled or lifted up, put down or built up?
2. Are the people you run with belittlers or builder-up-ers? What pulls you either way - and can you, will you, move to become more of a builder upper1/
3. How can you, will you, help others in your "tribe" speak of others and speak to others in ways that build them up?
4. Do you believe that it is possible to disagree about any sort of issue, yet remain in friendship, yet build one another, as I Thessalonians 5:11 says?

Photo by Heber Davis on Unsplash