How often do you feel you need encouragement? God’s word is full of encouraging words, and it commands us to encourage each other. It is amazing to me how the timing of God works in our lives. Just as I was searching out verses on encouragement, I received a text from a dear friend that was going through a very discouraging time. She needed encouragement, and she needed it then.
The Bible has much to say about encouragement. In the book of Acts, Barnabas was a great encouragement to the apostles. His name actually means “son of encouragement.”
Act 4:36 “Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus,”
We become acquainted with Barnabas in Acts 4:37. He sold his land and brought the money to apostles to meet the needs of those in the church. Barnabas encouraged with words, and with what God had placed in his hands.
Guess who comes to the rescue when Paul, who was once a persecutor of the church, was saved and wanted to join the disciples at Jerusalem? It was Barnabas.
Act 9:26-27 “And when Saul came to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus.”
Can you imagine how the new church would have suffered if Barnabas had not encouraged the apostles to accept Paul?
Later in Acts 12 Paul and Barnabas took Mark with them on a missionary journey. Mark, for whatever reason, left them to return home. In Acts 15, Mark wanted to return to the mission field, but Paul refused to take him with them. Again, Barnabas became the encourager, and separated from Paul, and took Mark with him. Mark became a great disciple of Christ and the author of the book of Mark.
Because Barnabas thought of others more than he did of himself, the church moved forward. Two men, Paul and Mark, moved forward and became great followers of Christ, and leaders of the church. Paul wrote 13 books of the New Testament and Mark wrote 1.
God does not allow us to see into the life of Barnabas to give us a pretty story. I believe he gives us the account of Barnabas’s life to teach us, and challenge us to be a “Barnabas.”
The verses below teach us the value of encouraging words to the soul.
Proverbs 12:25 “Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad.”
The heaviness in Proverbs 12:25 would better be translated as anxiety. Something that troubles many. The opportunity to encourage someone who is anxious will probably occur daily in our lives.
Proverbs 16:24 “Pleasant words are as a honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.”
Sometimes people just need to hear pleasant or gracious words to help them through the day.
Proverbs 25:11 “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.”
There are also times, like the lady I mentioned at the beginning when the timing of encouragement is of utmost importance. When the opportunity arises, we need to take advantage of it instead of putting it off to a more convenient time.
Be an encourager today!
