View the Bible Reading Plan for this Month: August
The Quiet Work of Builders
There is a quiet strength in those who nurture others. They do not seek recognition; they seek restoration.
Marvin J. Ashton once said, “Be the one who nurtures and builds. Be the one who has an understanding and a forgiving heart, one who looks for the best in people. Leave people better than you found them.”
This is not merely advice—it is a reflection of the heart of Christ.
Every time you choose to nurture instead of criticize, to forgive instead of condemn, or to build instead of break, you are living the Gospel in motion. This is what it means to obey the law of Christ—to carry one another’s burdens with compassion (Galatians 6:2 ERV). You become a living example of grace, demonstrating that love is not only spoken through words but proven through care.
To nurture others is to see them as God sees them: not as they are, but as they are becoming. Builders do not ignore the cracks; they repair them. They notice the fractures in others’ faith and meet them with understanding, patience, and prayer.
Seeing People Through God’s Eyes
The ability to nurture begins with vision—holy vision. You cannot nurture what you do not see, and you cannot build what you do not value. To nurture others is to look beyond the surface, to see the divine potential within every person, even when they cannot see it themselves.
Jesus modeled this so beautifully with Peter. When Peter denied Him three times, Jesus did not meet him with anger but with restoration. After the resurrection, He simply asked, “Do you love Me?” and then commissioned him, “Feed My sheep” (John 21:15–17). Jesus saw the failure, yes—but He also saw the future. He saw who Peter could become once grace took root.
When you nurture others, you are extending that same grace. You become a restorer of souls. You see people not through the lens of what they have done but through the lens of what God can still do in them.
It is easy to see flaws; it takes spiritual maturity to see fruit that has not yet grown. To nurture others well, you must train your eyes to recognize progress over perfection, potential over performance.
Understanding Hearts, Forgiving Souls
To nurture and build others means learning to understand before you assume, and forgive before you harden. The heart that nurtures must be tender enough to empathize but strong enough to endure disappointment.
Forgiveness is not weakness—it is wisdom. It releases you from bitterness and creates space for God to work. When you forgive, you stop demanding repayment from those who cannot give it. You trust that God can heal what they broke.
Ephesians 4:32 (CEV) encourages us, “Be kind and merciful, and forgive others, just as God forgave you because of Christ.” That verse carries both invitation and responsibility. Forgiveness nurtures freedom—in you and in others.
When you nurture people through forgiveness, you teach them how to receive grace and extend it. You model what love looks like when it costs something. The one who nurtures and builds is not naive; they are Spirit-led. They understand that the same mercy they give will someday return to them, multiplied and overflowing.
Building People, Not Platforms
In a culture obsessed with visibility, God calls His people to value influence through impact, not applause. True builders do their best work in the unseen places—where no one claps, but Heaven notices.
To build people means to invest your time, your prayers, and your patience into their becoming. It means mentoring without expecting recognition, encouraging without needing credit, and believing in others when they struggle to believe in themselves.
Paul wrote to the Thessalonian church, “Encourage each other and build each other up” (1 Thessalonians 5:11 ERV). This was not a suggestion—it was a command rooted in community. Building others is Kingdom work. Every time you speak life into someone’s weakness or remind them of their worth in Christ, you are constructing something eternal.
Your words become bricks of healing. Your prayers become mortar for restoration. Your compassion becomes the scaffolding that helps others rise again.
The nurturing heart does not compete—it completes. It understands that the goal is not to outshine others but to help them shine brighter.
Leaving People Better Than You Found Them
To leave people better than you found them is to walk in the ministry of presence. Sometimes it means offering advice; other times, it means offering silence. Sometimes it means a word of encouragement; other times, a prayer whispered in secret.
Every encounter you have is an opportunity for transformation. You may never know the full impact of your kindness, but God does. Your role is to plant seeds of hope, speak life where death once lingered, and reflect Christ in the small, consistent moments.
This kind of nurturing requires intentionality. You must slow down long enough to notice the weary and listen long enough to understand their pain. You cannot leave people better if you never take time to be present.
When you live this way, people feel lighter after being around you. They feel seen, heard, and valued. You carry the fragrance of grace—the kind that lingers long after you leave the room. That is what it means to leave people better than you found them: to deposit peace instead of pressure, mercy instead of judgment, and love instead of indifference.
The Heart of a True Nurturer
Those who nurture and build others often do so while healing themselves. That is the mystery and beauty of grace—it flows through cracks, not perfection.
If you are weary in doing good, remember Galatians 6:9 (ESV): “Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” Your work in nurturing others will bear fruit, even if you cannot see it yet.
God honors those who sow kindness into difficult soil. He remembers every word of encouragement, every act of forgiveness, every prayer offered in love. He multiplies your effort and transforms your obedience into legacy.
To nurture is to partner with God’s redemptive plan. You are not fixing people—you are planting faith in them. You are helping them see that they, too, are worthy of God’s love and capable of new beginnings.
Reflection Questions to think about
How can you nurture the people around you with greater patience and compassion?
Are there areas in your relationships where you need to choose forgiveness instead of resentment?
What does it look like for you to “leave people better than you found them” in your daily life?
Who in your life might need you to see them the way God sees them—full of potential and purpose?
Affirmations to say to yourself
I am called to nurture others with the love and grace that Christ has shown me.
I will choose to build, not break—to restore, not resent.
My forgiveness creates space for healing, both in me and in others.
I will see the best in people, trusting that God is still writing their story.
Everywhere I go, I will leave people better than I found them.
Final Thought
To nurture is to participate in God’s healing work on Earth. It is to love as He loves, forgive as He forgives, and build as He builds. When you walk through life this way—with a heart that seeks to restore and uplift—you reflect the very character of Christ. And that is how you truly leave people better than you found them.