The purpose of this website is to help you develop and implement Barnabas Ministry.  As Christians  we are all called to be Barnabas ministers.  By "Barnabas Ministry" I am referring to the acts of self-giving, caring, coming along side of, encouraging, helping, and serving one another that were so characteristic of Barnabas.  I  am further referring to our key principle espoused in Galatians 6:2 which says "Bear one another's burdens and thus fulfill the law of Christ" (NAS).

For practical, instructional purposes it is helpful to think of four, progressive kinds of Barnabas Ministry.  Our reason for dissecting the overarching concept of encouragement is merely so that the novice doesn’t feel so overwhelmed by a call to Barnabas Ministry.  There is already something the novice can do and do well as reflected in the first kind of Barnabas Ministry (befriending) while the other kinds further equip and allow additional service.  I believe that all Christians are called to at least the first kind of Barnabas Ministry. It is important and helpful to realize that God wouldn’t call us to something we couldn’t do. Many people also have natural abilities or can be taught to implement kinds two (reassuring) and three (exhorting).  The Barnabas training addresses the first three kinds and recognizes that the fourth kind requires more study and specialized training. The fourth kind of Barnabas Ministry (experienced expertise) is available through the home office training and resource team via onsite instruction and continuing electronic communication and consultation.    It is important to note that the bulk of Barnabas Ministry can be done at the first three kinds of encouragement.  It must be remembered that all these kinds of encouragement represent the same thing: a continuum  of Barnabas Ministry.

    Figure 1: Continuum of Barnabas Ministry

 

    E            N            C             O           U            R             A            G             E             M             E              N              T

______________________________________________________________________________

  Befriending                                    Reassuring                                   Exhorting                                      Experienced Expertise                                                                                                

(Includes reaching out, witnessing, visiting, listening, helping, doing for, praying for)

(Includes helping  person(s) more fully appreciate, recognize, experience God or God's truth, comfort, purpose)

(Includes Befriending and Reassuring applied to problematic, sinful, or dysfunctional living)

(Includes expert teaching, resources, consultation, supervision)

                                 

 

 

The first and foremost kind of encouragement, rooted in Galatians 6:2, can be considered as befriending.  Befriending involves such functions as reaching out, giving time, visiting, listening, helping, or praying for another.  This level mostly requires that you, as a Barnabas minister, only need to have the right heart and be willing to show up.  God will do the rest. 

Think back for a moment on your own Christian life. Whenever you have experienced a personal difficulty or problem didn’t it feel helpful to have someone simply come alongside you and let you know that person would be praying for you?  Can you remember a recent example? Is there any way to lose by making such a kind, compassionate gesture? That kind of expressed Christian concern is the idea of level one.  You can’t lose or blow it.  Everybody is being faithful and Christ is honored. Where else but in the Christian life can something so basic

The second kind of Barnabas Ministry involves going a little further by coming alongside of another to help that person     better appreciate and experience God’s presence, truth, comfort, or purpose and can be considered as reassuring. The ministry of reassuring is particularly meaningful during times of crises. Barnabas Ministry training will address specific kinds of crises and how to best help.

Think back again on your own Christian life.  Can you remember a time where, in the midst of a crisis, someone helped remind you that God was there and in control even though it may have been hard to see Him or appreciate His will at the time?  Based on your knowledge of God and experience with Him didn’t such a faithful reminder allow some real relief or heavenly perspective in the very midst of your crisis?  That kind of expressed Christian concern that allows reassurance and relief in the midst of a life storm is the idea of the second kind of encouragement. 

The third kind goes even farther in reaching out by active Barnabas Ministry to wounded people, or people experiencing wounding circumstances, and can be considered as exhorting.  Exhorting means all the same things as encouraging but applies, in an advisory, admonishing, and guiding manner, to problematic, sinful, or dysfunctional areas of life. Exhorting means applying God’s truth to life situations in such a way that inspires hope of healing or rescue.  It is assisting an individual find God’s directions and road map when that person has been injuriously detoured by sin, dysfunction, deception, or psychological-spiritual blind spots.

Think back again to a time where a sermon, book, lecture, comment, or personal study clarified  your understanding in such a way that you could approach a particular problem, misunderstanding, or difficulty in a refreshed, redirected way.  That kind of expressed clarification and renewed redirection is the idea of level three.

As you might expect kind three covers a broad encouragement spectrum that ranges from such possible actions as recommending a helpful book, engaging in limited counseling, or applying loving admonishment pertaining to sinful or dysfunctional practices.  Now the freeing part of kind three is that you don’t have to actually assume responsibility for change - only for pointing the injured or disobedient person towards truth and change in conformity to God’s will in a loving, encouraging, and accurately biblical way. And there is always the back up of kind four available.

And level four?  Well that level is beyond what we can reasonably expect to accomplish given the practical parameters of our learning experience here.  It is reserved and recognized for professional education, training, and experience.  We’ll call our training and resource team as the home office team. This kind of encouragement is actually hands on, practical consultation and outsourcing assistance from trained professionals with the Barnabas Ministry home office team.  It is helpful to realize that there are caring Christian professionals who can assist with Barnabas Ministry constituting a last line of defense!   These folks already have training and experience in helping others and can serve as resources, consultants, supervisors, or teachers for kinds one, two, and three. A Barnabas Ministry should have access to such folks for resources and guidance of the overall ministry.  Many times there are also professional folks who are already members of the church beginning a Barnabas Ministry.  If not, community Christian counseling professionals are usually glad to participate and receive referrals when needed for professional care . And, of course, there is always the pastor and church leadership to coordinate and oversee all ministry. Such qualified professional and spiritual  help provides a safety net as we attempt to tip-toe across the high wire of hands-on, Barnabas Ministry.

It should again be remembered that, though we have dissected this one broad idea for instructional purposes, all four of these specific areas are derivatives of the key, overarching concept of encouragement in the Barnabas, Galatians 6:2 sense.  The role of the encourager is to come alongside a fellow believer to demonstrate and reflect God’s personal caring and involvement.  Whereas the Army’s slogan is “be all you can be” the encourager’s rally cry is “ be the best Christian you can be - and experience God’s richest blessings as a result!.”

The Weaker Brother or Sister

At all kinds of ministry we must consider our obligations and duties to try to understand, edify, come alongside, and bear the weaknesses of those less fortunate or weaker than ourselves out of love and obedience to Christ without passing judgment, condemnation, or rejection. We are to build up, admonish, and love our weaker brother or sister while exercising self-denial on their behalf.

I would also take the liberty of pointing out that the principle applies not only to weaker brothers and sisters but to equal and stronger brothers and sisters in weaker moments or difficult times. That weaker brother or sister may very well be us!  Even the strongest among us possesses weakness, vulnerabilities, or the need for growth of some kind.

People become weaker brothers or sisters, in the psychological sense, by their unique levels of wounding life experiences. By “wounded” I mean to convey the psychological and spiritual equivalent to the physical understanding of that word.  Something has happened to psychologically or spiritually injure that individual to whom you seek to minister.  People are wounded more deeply than is apparent.  That wound directly impacts that person’s ability to receive Barnabas Ministry (or any other ministry for that matter). A wound can be a scratch,  a bruise, a blow,  or a stab all of which can range from being superficial to life threatening to lethal.  Hebrews cautions:

        Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you away from the living God.  But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.                                                    (Hebrews 3:12, 13 NAS)  

People can be wounded in the psychological-spiritual sense from a variety of causes that range from ordinary struggles living the Christian life to the loss of a loved one to deep and dysfunctional psychological or relational processes.  Their pain, however, is the engraved invitation to ministry.  They are crying out for help, guarding against further harm, and desperately needing to be rescued emotionally, physically, and spiritually.  We are to be the messengers of good news that hope and healing in Christ is available in ways they may never have imagined. Subsequent instruction will further address this concept of woundedness and how it affects Barnabas Ministry in a very key way.

By Any Other Name

It is not at all unusual to experience apprehension about actually doing Barnabas Ministry (or even thinking about doing it).  When I was in graduate school learning to become a psychologist the same thing happened to all of us aspiring counselors.  When it came time to actually counsel with real, live, breathing individuals we all became anxious.  It is far easier to talk about it, or study it, or philosophize it, or teach it, or just ignore it than to implement hands-on, real-life ministry. If nothing else there is a kind of stage fright, first-day-of-school uncertainty concerning how all this preparation and good intention is going to really pan out.

I remember one of my early experiences as though it was yesterday.  I wanted so intensely to help this couple coming for marital problems.  I told myself that I should be able to do this but I didn’t have sufficient experience yet to feel very calm or confident.

“I can tell you the problem already,” the wife clarified as we dove into our first session.  “It’s part me and part him.”  The husband sank into his chair like a schoolboy being reported to the principal. 

“All my life I’ve felt that nobody really cared; nobody really loved me; and nobody - NOBODY - ever listens to me.  I thought all that had changed when we first married but before too long I felt it all over again.  He never listens to me.  I’m unimportant to him.  He seems to care less and less about me.  Somedays I don’t even believe my name crosses his mind.”

Ever alert for a helping opportunity I swiftly and surely professionally jumped into the conversation. “Now, now Jean...do you really think that...” 

Before I could even end my first sentence this now infuriated wife retaliated, “Jean?  JEAN?  Who is JEAN?!!  Are you calling me ‘Jean?’  My name is Dorothy.  Dorothy!  Where did you come up with ‘Jean?’   Weren’t you listening?  Weren’t you paying attention?  That’s exactly what I’m talking about!!  NOBODY LISTENS TO ME!!!   AAAAaaaaaauuuuuuuuggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!”

Yes it actually happened.  What a nightmare.  Yet within five minutes the entire event was forgotten.  Of course I haven’t forgotten it.  I’ m still reticent about using names in first sessions.  But the important thing is that she forgot it quickly as we moved on with our discussion and it did not hinder the rest of our session which went well (more than making up for my foot-in-mouth faux pas).  The mistake occurred but it did not hinder the ministry.  And that is the way it will work in Barnabas Ministry as well. 

You can make mistakes - though I doubt that any you’ll make will be as gross as mine here - but it won’t hinder the ministry.  Now I’m not promoting mistakes.  We all need to work hard at doing our very best in every Barnabas situation. Mistakes will inevitably occur.  It’s not so much what you do as who you are and Whose you are!!  If your heart is right your mistakes will never hinder the real impact of the ministry.  What may seem like a colossal blunder will be offset by God working through you.  After all, the person to whom you seek to minister is not really responding to you but to God.  God wants to use you.  You can do it.  With God’s help you can do it!!

The Power of Prayer

Encouragement is so powerful it can even be effective in absentia.  Now I’m not advocating sleeping on the job or failing to show up but the encouraging power of prayer cannot be overstated.  Knowing that someone is praying for you is tremendously encouraging to other Christians who realize that God is actively listening and ready to respond.  One woman was attracted to her (eventual) church simply because she discovered that members of that church, who didn’t even know her,  had heard of her situation and were praying for her. And hers is not an isolated case. That kind of response is Christian caring and encouragement in action.  Barnabas Ministry must be constantly bathed in prayer - for others, for ourselves, and for our impact as Barnabas ministers.

What It Looks Like

You can be a Barnabas minister anywhere anytime but it works best as a church ministry composed of Christians working together.  Hurting, or wounded, people are identified in the church and a Barnabas response begins.  A call may come to a pastor.  A church member may know of an individual in need. A prayer request may identify a need.  There are numerous ways in the church that such needs come to attention.  It’s no accident.

Once that need is identified a Barnabas minister may be assigned to respond to that person(s).  That response may be a telephone contact, a visit, or an offer to help in a specific situation.  But the work isn’t over yet.  The ministry continues through concerned and diligent follow-up and ongoing involvement.  The specific need is met but the deeper appreciation from the encouragement allows that person to experience God’s love and care in a personalized way which, in turn, allows a closer  appreciation and experience of God and movement towards psychological-spiritual wholeness-holiness.  Mission accomplished.  

Figure 2: Barnabas Ministry in Action  

 

    E        N        C        O       U        R        A        G        E        M        E        N        T

    (1) Wounded-Hurting-Needy Person(s)    (2) Church Leaders and Barnabas   (3) A Barnabas Minister(s)               

     Is Identified                                                    Ministry Are Notified                          Responds

  

    (4)  Care and Love Of Christ                (5) Continued Care And Follow-up         (6)  Christ is honored; Path to                         

           Begins                                                                                                                   Wholeness- Holiness Is

                                                                                                                                            Experienced

 

Encouraging the Encourager 

A couple of common concerns in beginning Barnabas Ministry are related to roles and back-up.  What role will the pastor play?  Will he still do counseling?  His role won’t change.  He’ll continue to do what he’s doing but he’ll be delighted to see lay ministry helping him and doing important work.  He can’t do it all.  Part of his job is to equip members for the work of ministry rather than doing that ministry himself.  What happens if I get in over my head?  You shouldn’t because the Barnabas leader(s) will assign appropriate Barnabas ministers according to their capabilities for the situation.  If something unexpected happens those same leaders will serve as resources and back-ups for you. It is their job to have those back-ups in place and they are accountable to church leadership for all that goes on.  How much time will this ministry take?  The answer to that question depends upon what you are willing to give.  There will be a training period (12 weeks each for part one/levels 1 and 12 weeks for part two/level 2) and there will be time involved in hands-on ministry. Level 1 training simply means going through the training of part one.  It consists largely of reading weekly assignements and meeting in a weekly study group. Assignments are simple and not time-consuming. It is possible, for example, that you may later discover that you only feel called to level one Barnabas Ministry which requires minimal time and can often be done through prayer, phone calls, or weekly visits.  If you move ahead to level two (group participation in the following twelve chapters of level 2 training) you most likely won’t be so concerned about time because you’ll be so excited and enthusiastic about what is happening!  Will I benefit beyond the obvious participation in the Barnabas Ministry?  I believe that the information and experience that you will gain will be of tremendous value in your own Christian growth and will further benefit your interactions with friends and loved ones.  God will surely bless you and all your efforts.   Level 3 of Barnabas Ministry refers to those original members trained by the home office team, or folks who have subsequently completed the training, and participate in the ongoing training and active outreach of levels 1 and 2.  Level 4 is the home office team.

 

Whats and Hows and Whens

Naturally you may not feel very proficient in your encouragement abilities yet. That confidence will com e with    practice. This course will equip you  i n Barnabas Ministry.  So far we’ve been talking a lot about the “what” part:  what all needs to be done in understanding and considering a Barnabas Ministry. But the “how” part is coming. Both parts are equally important.  Now you already know a lot of the “how” part that doesn’t need to be in this book such as picking up a phone, making or delivering a meal, praying for another, visiting someone, inviting someone to a meal, etc.  Please don’t wait until you feel like an expert before you act in such areas.  There are many common sense things you can already do or may already be doing.

The “how” part will consist of a number of “do’s” and “don’ts” for the “what” part. Those kinds of directive guidelines will be numerous and throughout the training.  We are starting with the “what” part in order to get a big picture perspective of what all needs to be done.  The “how” part clarifies the “what” part and provides more specific, strategic steps to accomplish our “what” goals. Now that we generally understand what Barnabas Ministry is all about, subsequent chapters will include more and more of  the “how” part.  It is hoped that you will gain a broad idea of “what” needs to be done and helpful suggestions for “how” to do it.

The overarching scope of Barnabas Ministry involves training at two clinical levels with a third level of expertise as a guide, resource, and operations center. Please don’t be confused by our previous discussion of the four levels of encouragement and our current discussion of three clinical levels of Barnabas training.  Part One of the training prepares level one Barnabas ministers. It addresses practical issues of understanding people and implementing a ministry of encouragement.  It is entitled “Blind Faith” because it requires blind trust that God will use and equip you despite many contrary feelings you may experience along the way.  Remember that this is Christ’s ministry.  He’ll use you but he doesn’t depend solely on you to get the job done. Level One Barnabas ministers have levels two and three as back ups. It is not required that Level One Barnabas ministers continue on to Part Two training, however it provides more depth and enrichment to what has been learned in Part One.  While Part One reaches without, Part Two reaches without and within. Part Two of the training focuses more on understanding ourselves thereby helping us perform part One (reaching without) at a more advanced and sophisticated manner.  We become our own guinea pigs in the laboratory of Barnabas Ministry in order to more fully grow in Christ while continuing to minister to others in His name.

Part Two is entitled “Blind Spots” because it educates the Christian concerning hidden or unrecognized psychological and spiritual mind manipulations that directly impact Christian growth and Barnabas Ministry.  Part Two prepares level two Barnabas ministers for more advanced work. Level three Barnabas ministers consists of the professionally trained resource team that, having received training in levels one and two, coordinate the daily function of the Barnabas Ministry accountable to church leadership. Level four is the actual behind-the-scenes Barnabas team who originally trained the first team and remains involved via the Internet.

Figure 3: Flow Chart of Overarching Barnabas Ministry

     (1) Church Leadership Commissions Barnabas Ministry and Authorizes Level Three Leadership Team

    (2) BLIND FAITH: Part One/Level One Training equips Barnabas ministers in practical issues of understanding  people, addressing problem situations, and  implementing  a ministry of encouragement

    (3) BLIND SPOTS: Part Two/Level Two Training equips Barnabas ministers in understanding hidden or unrecognized psychological and spiritual mind  manipulations that directly impact Christian growth and  Barnabas Ministry for the purpose of supervision and resource availability to Level One ministers and for the more advanced work of personal and relational encouragement.

    (4) Level Three Leadership Team coordinates/oversees Barnabas Ministry resourced to Level Four Team via Internet and other electronic means.             

Yes, there is a lot of information contained in the Barnabas training material.  Yes, it may seem like rough going at times. And yes, yes, you can do it.  The forthcoming chapters of Part One represent an overview of the kinds of people you’ll likely meet in need of Barnabas Ministry.  Each chapter will provide a way of understanding people with guidelines for ministering to them. You are not expected to become an expert.  The idea is for you to be able to grasp the basic approach for understanding people and Barnabas Ministry.  You can return and review sections as much as you would like - even when you may later find yourself ministering to such a person as a particular section described.  And there will always be levels two and three supervisors and back-ups to support you and guide you along.  Part Two prepares those level two supervisors.  Level three supervisors consists of trained professionals who adhere to the Barnabas training and approach.  

Won’t You Come Along?

Remember, if you will, the story of Barnabas and Paul that began our glimpse into Barnabas Ministry.  Barnabas had been selected to institute a new encouragement ministry at the fired-up, happening church at Antioch. One of the first things Barnabas did was to go and get Saul for the work there.  Could you imagine being in Saul’s place?   

Barnabas Ministry is an in-depth discipleship ministry of  ENCOURAGEMENT.  Participants are equipped to encourage, counsel, understand, and speak a new language of woundedness which reaches today’s culture within and without the church. The primary purpose of Barnabas Ministry is to train and equip encouragers for both formal and informal ministry to hurting people or to people in painful or potentially difficult situations.  Informally, everyone needs to become an effective encourager - especially those in leadership positions.  Every leader will benefit from a Barnabas perspective which allows the development and perspective of true servant-leadership based upon biblical humility, compassion, and grace.  That is why every Christian servant-leader will benefit from Barnabas training whether or not that leader pursues a more formal affiliation with an active Barnabas team. 

Would you imagine Barnabas coming to you and reporting the Lord’s desire to encourage believers and other wounded individuals right there in your church and community?  How would you respond? You don’t need all the answers.  You only need the right heart, a willingness to be used by God, and a teachable spirit. God will work through you if you’ll let Him.  Won’t you come along?  You’ll be blessed as you do.