Day 40 - Encouragement in Christ
Satan is relentless. He never gives up, and his ability to deceive and distort the truth is beyond what we could ever imagine. Satan seduced one third of the angels in heaven to revolt against God. And these angels lived in the very presence of the glory of God—and still Satan convinced them to rebel! If Satan can accomplish that with angels in heaven, imagine the damage he can do in the minds and hearts of believers here on planet earth. Rightly did Hal Lindsay write, “Satan is alive and well on planet earth.†What’s a believer to do?
In a single word—encourage! Live your life as an ambassador of the encouragement found in Christ Jesus. One of my favorite characters in the New Testament is a man named Barnabas. In the book of Acts, he is described in this way, “Now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement).†(Acts 4:36)
Barnabas lived up to his name in marvelous ways. When Saul first got saved, it was Barnabas who single-handedly took him to meet the other believers—even though they were scared to meet with him. (Acts 9:26, 27) Later, a young believer named John Mark left Paul & Barnabas on their first missionary journey. (Acts 13:13) Barnabas sought to restore John Mark and take him along on the next missionary venture. Paul was strongly opposed to this idea. Paul had given up on John Mark, but not Barnabas! (Acts 15:36-39)
Live like Barnabas today—be an enthusiastic encourager in Christ! Find a brother or sister that you can encourage today!
Today’s Scripture Promise: “…encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25b)