THE BIBLE AND YOU
Choose to Be Happy
While Encouraging Others How can we find happiness in discouraging times such as these? One way is through encouraging others. by Janet Treadway
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ne evening as I was watching an episode of America’s Got Talent during the fall 2021 season, the last singer brought me to tears. Jane Marczewski from Zanesville, Ohio, was not only amazing but also inspirational. When asked by one of the judges what she does for a living, the 30-year-old contestant opened up about her personal struggle. She explained: “I have not been working for quite a few years. I’ve been dealing with cancer.” Before she began singing her original song “It’s OK,” she explained, “It’s the story of the last year of my life.” She added, “It’s important that everyone knows I’m so much more than the bad things that happen to me.” The judges were inspired by her. After her performance, one gave her the award all contestants hoped for— the golden buzzer, which automatically advanced her in the contest without the rest of the judges voting. She explained the attitude that had kept her going: “You can’t wait until life isn’t hard anymore before you decide to be happy.” If anyone had a right to be unhappy, she did—as she has been fighting for several years against a cancer that has a 2 percent survival rate. “You blew us all away,” the host of the show said. “You are the voice we all need to hear this year.”
of encouragement everyone needs right now. That’s why the judges of America’s Got Talent and those who were watching it became emotional. If this young woman can keep going with only a 2 percent chance of recovering from this cancer and decide to be happy, so can we. Great advice, right? Easier said than done. So how can we do that? The day after I watched this episode of America’s Got Talent, we had a special guest talk
Encouragement in distressing times This is certainly so after everything we’ve been through in recent times, with so many challenges affecting us all in different ways. We’ve been through so much this last year with the Covid pandemic. It has brought isolation, fear, anxiety and anger. It has divided people, including families. What this young woman did in her song gave the kind 28 Beyond Today
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to us at the office about how to handle stress. The timing was perfect after being inspired by this young singer the night before. The presenter’s name is Andi Chapman. She gave some amazing points on how to handle stress. (You can find several recorded interviews with her by searching for “Andi Chapman” on our website at ucg.org.) One point that stood out in my mind was the power of encouragement. It’s amazing how reaching out to encourage others helps you forget your own problems. Everyone needs encouragement. Every person you run into in your day-to-day life needs to be encouraged. Every person is going through something. Consider again the young woman on America’s Got Talent. She has enough reason to stay home and give up, but instead she decided to reach out and encourage others with her amazing voice, amazing example and amazing message
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“It’s important that everyone knows I’m so much more than the bad things that happen to me.” —Jane Marczewski, singer and cancer fighter
