Be a Barnabas

Being a girl is hard. Being a woman doesn’t get any easier. And being a WOMAN that is ministering to GIRLS is no cake walk.

I find myself astonished at how naturally girls and women get caught up in the habit of gossip, negative mindsets and harsh words.

Sass comes naturally to me.
Gossip rolls off the tongue.
But this must not be our norm!

As followers of Christ, as women seeking after Jesus and as leaders in our churches we must be different. We must set an example in honoring God with the way that we communicate and use our speech. The way that we encounter others. The way that we carry ourselves.

The Lord placed this so heavily on my heart as of late that I began to think and pray three words often. “Be A Barnabas.” So much so that it is taped on top of my computer screen in my office.

Be a Barnabas! Barnabas means “son of encouragement” and this Apostle spread love and encouragement wherever he went!

Throughout scripture we see this man of God ministering to those around him in good seasons and in bad with encouragement.

What would it look like if we set a new standard?

Instead of sass, we show respect.
Instead of revenge, we show grace.
Instead of gossip, we protect and defend.
Instead of sinking into negativity, we encourage.

Encourage one another and build one another up. (1 Thessalonians 5:11)

We have an opportunity each day to either encourage and give hope to those we encounter and give them a picture of Jesus or to sink to the depths of the world and leave them the same, or worse, than before we found them.

Let’s encourage. Let’s give hope. Let’s be a Barnabas.