Teach Me to be a Barnabas

Heavenly Father I praise You for the times people invested in me because they trusted You to do Your work through me. I praise You for allowing me to have a prayer ministry that teaches people how to talk to You and my smaller prayer ministry allows me to pray with trusted friends over healings, intercession and life’s troubles. I praise You for the faithfulness of my most trusted friends to pray over the seriousness of life.  

Holy Spirit Your word tells us: When Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples. But they all feared him, not believing he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and led him to the apostles, and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, and that He spoken to him, and how he had boldly preached in Damascus in the name of Jesus. So he stayed with them while coming in and going out of Jerusalem. [Acts 9:26-28] If Barnabas had not stood up for Saul who would become Paul we would not have most of the New Testament. Help me to stand up for and support potential Pauls in the world. Help me to be discerning enough and trusting enough of You to put my reputation on the line to support those who You chose to do Your work even if it does not fit the norm.  

Holy Spirit help me to be an encourager and a person who can see the good in people and promote that good so that You can move on peoples’ lives. Help me to speak up for people who need an advocate just as Christ is my advocate. Help me to put people forward who have the potential to make major gains for Your kingdom. Let me use my influence to promote Your people who You invest in.  

Grace and peace will be multiplied to me through the knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given to me all things that pertain to life and godliness through the knowledge of God who has called me to His glory and excellence, by which He has given to me exceedingly great and precious promises so that through these things I might become a partaker of the divine nature and escape the corruption that is in the world through lust. For this reason, help me to make every effort to add virtue to my faith; and to my virtue, knowledge, and to my knowledge, self-control; and to my self-control, patient endurance; and to my patient endurance, godliness; and to my godliness, brotherly kindness; and to my brotherly kindness love. For if all of these reside in me and abound, they will ensure that I will neither be useless nor unfruitful in the knowledge of Jesus Christ my Lord. Help me to diligently make my calling and election sure so that when I add all these areas into my life I will not stumble and will be able to enter into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ which will be abundantly provided for me. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 2 Peter 1:3-11 MEV version