Acts 4:36
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
36 For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus.
Mentoring is an essential need in the church. Being able to spot a young person with potential and nurturing them is a key gift. Barnabas had this gift. Two men in the New Testament, both better known than Barnabas, owe their success at least in part to the mentoring relationship they had with him. We know well the Apostle Paul. He was a mentee of Barnabas. What about John Mark?
A quiet event happened on the missionary trip when Paul and Barnabas were working together to expand the church. John Mark, one of the younger team members, deserted the effort and returned home. On a later missionary journey, John Mark wanted to rejoin the team. Paul refused to take John Mark. Barnabas would not abandon John Mark, a good man who needed sponsorship, encouragement and development. Paul was now well established. Barnabas chose to travel with John Mark.
A great mentor doesn’t win just by going with winners. He or she sometimes turns losers into winners. That’s what Barnabas did with John Mark. That’s what God needs with you; a believer with the vision, discernment and commitment to take on a mentoring relationship with someone who needs encouragement.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
THE VALUE OF RELATIONSHIPS
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Advantages of Companionship
9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. 10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. 11 Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? 12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
There is power in relationships. Together we can do better work. Together we can help each other in difficult times.
Take a thread and see how much strength is needed to break it. It’s easily doable. Take three strands of the same thread and twist them together. The task of snapping them becomes more difficult.
Three separate individuals are as vulnerable as one individual alone. In “relationships”, we are like the twisted thread. Better work, less vulnerability.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Advantages of Companionship
9 Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. 10 If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble. 11 Likewise, two people lying close together can keep each other warm. But how can one be warm alone? 12 A person standing alone can be attacked and defeated, but two can stand back-to-back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken.
There is power in relationships. Together we can do better work. Together we can help each other in difficult times.
Take a thread and see how much strength is needed to break it. It’s easily doable. Take three strands of the same thread and twist them together. The task of snapping them becomes more difficult.
Three separate individuals are as vulnerable as one individual alone. In “relationships”, we are like the twisted thread. Better work, less vulnerability.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
PRIORITY ON RELATIONSHIPS
1 Kings 19:19-21
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Call of Elisha
19 So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field. There were twelve teams of oxen in the field, and Elisha was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and then walked away. 20 Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, “First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!”
Elijah replied, “Go on back, but think about what I have done to you.”
21 So Elisha returned to his oxen and slaughtered them. He used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the townspeople, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant.
In this passage, we see the beginning of the mentoring relationship between Elijah and Elisha. It is similar to the relationship Jesus formed with His disciples. In both cases they dropped everything and followed their mentor. Elisha and the disciples learned that following God’s will is worth infinitely more than money. Money and achievements will disappear in the end, but relationships will endure forever. This is why our Lord said we should spend earthly wealth on gaining friends so they will be with us in eternity (Luke 16:9).
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
The Call of Elisha
19 So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field. There were twelve teams of oxen in the field, and Elisha was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and then walked away. 20 Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, “First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!”
Elijah replied, “Go on back, but think about what I have done to you.”
21 So Elisha returned to his oxen and slaughtered them. He used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the townspeople, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant.
In this passage, we see the beginning of the mentoring relationship between Elijah and Elisha. It is similar to the relationship Jesus formed with His disciples. In both cases they dropped everything and followed their mentor. Elisha and the disciples learned that following God’s will is worth infinitely more than money. Money and achievements will disappear in the end, but relationships will endure forever. This is why our Lord said we should spend earthly wealth on gaining friends so they will be with us in eternity (Luke 16:9).
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
SEE IN THE BEAMS
1 John 4:9-11; 20-21
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Loving One Another
9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.
20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.
The Scriptures teach us that the most important things in this life – and the next – are relationships. God demonstrated His interest … His love for humanity … most fully in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ (the vertical beam). This love shows the greatest intention of God’s will for our highest good. John tells us that those who have entered into the love of the Father through His Son should naturally express this love in their relationships with others (the horizontal beam). In fact, those who do not love the members of God’s family should seriously question whether they really love God.
When we look at the Cross, we can see in the vertical and horizontal beams, these expressions of God’s love. He first loved us. Let us now love Him back and love one another.
Holy Bible. New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004 by Tyndale Charitable Trust.
Loving One Another
9 God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. 10 This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.
11 Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.
20 If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? 21 And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters.
The Scriptures teach us that the most important things in this life – and the next – are relationships. God demonstrated His interest … His love for humanity … most fully in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ (the vertical beam). This love shows the greatest intention of God’s will for our highest good. John tells us that those who have entered into the love of the Father through His Son should naturally express this love in their relationships with others (the horizontal beam). In fact, those who do not love the members of God’s family should seriously question whether they really love God.
When we look at the Cross, we can see in the vertical and horizontal beams, these expressions of God’s love. He first loved us. Let us now love Him back and love one another.
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