Heavenly Father I praise You and glorify Your name in all that I am and to all that I talk to. I praise You for making me and for giving me purpose. I praise You that I can take command of my morning through Your Holy Spirit to see that I bring Your kingdom here for today.
Holy Spirit help me learn Barnabas's lesson, which was his nickname. Barnabas means encourager that is what he was. He had traveled with Paul and suffered from being stoned and imprisoned and was there for the first missionary travels. But, Barnabas took a stand and it would take him in a different direction than Paul. Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them, Paul did not because he had left them early in the first missionary travels because he was young and unprepared. Paul would go on with Silas and Barnabas would go on with John Mark. Because of his faithfulness, he would help teach and lead John Mark until he would later serve under Peter. Mark would be the inspired writer for Peter and Christ writing what today is one of the first four books of the New Testament. Barnabas gave up the time and travel with Paul to encourage, nurture, and grow a young man that Paul had written off. Help me to be an encourager and maybe even pick up the nickname Barnabas along the way. Help me not to give up people, especially the ones Your Spirit pricks my heart about.
“Then the righteous will answer Him, saying ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? Or when did we see you sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, in as much as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’” Let this be so in my life and also in the lives of those I encourage. Amen. [Matthew 25:37-40]