Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Genuine Encouragement

Back in Jerusalem he [Paul] tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him. They didn't trust him one bit. Then Barnabas took him under his wing. He introduced him to the apostles and stood up for him, told them how Saul had seen and spoken to the Master on the Damascus Road and how in Damascus itself he had laid his life on the line with his bold preaching in Jesus' name. (Acts 9:26-27, MSG)

When the church at Jerusalem heard what had happened, they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw this evidence of God’s blessing, he was filled with joy, and he encouraged the believers to stay true to the Lord. Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and strong in faith. And many people were brought to the Lord. (Acts 11:22-24, NLT)

After a few days of this, Paul said to Barnabas, "Let's go back and visit all our friends in each of the towns where we preached the Word of God. Let's see how they're doing." Barnabas wanted to take John along, the John nicknamed Mark. But Paul wouldn't have him; he wasn't about to take along a quitter who, as soon as the going got tough, had jumped ship on them in Pamphylia. Tempers flared, and they ended up going their separate ways: Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus; Paul chose Silas... (Acts 15:36-39, MSG)

It was the summer after high school graduation when I was still living with my parents on Maui that I made a new friend. Her name was Dora. She lived on Oahu and our boyfriends were serving together in the Army. They "introduced" us to each other and we developed a friendship over the phone and through letters (this was in the "olden" days when email didn't yet exist). She was also a Christian and we hit it off right away, even though we had never met in person.

A few months into our friendship there was a crisis in my life that occurred. It was one of those overwhelming, bring-you-to-your-knees kinds of crises. I thought my world was falling apart. In a heartbeat, Dora hopped on the first inter-island flight she could grab after work and flew over to be with me. She stayed overnight and left at dawn to catch the first flight back for work. She did this twice more, wanting nothing more than to be a friend, an encourager and a support when I needed it most. She was that kind of person, always putting others before herself, always encouraging. She was a female, modern-day Barnabus, always believing in people. Over time we lost touch, but I have never forgotten her and her kindness and encouragement.

Everyone needs a Dora or a Barnabus in their lives. As women we have a unique bent toward relationships; much moreso than men. We desire relationships with each other; we thrive on them! It is for this reason that God is able to easily use us in each other's lives. Sometimes, though, we allow life to creep in and we use the excuse of being too busy to connect with each other. We lose out on those very relationships and friendships that we crave.

Today let's put aside some of our busyness and reach out to someone who needs us to be their encouragement and to believe in them. Let's put each other first.