Category: Encouragement

Unlimited Potential

“The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.” Proverbs 20:5 (ESV) How do you view other people? Do you settle for what they see in themselves or do you see what could be and what should be in their lives? God has saved you and sanctified you so that you can help others reach their God-given potential. God has placed eternity in their hearts and He has infused them with purpose. As God brings you alongside them, you are to be a person of understanding. As a person of understanding, you have the God-given capacity to draw out the best in them. You can help those God places in your sphere of influence to reach their unlimited potential. “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.” Philippians 2:19-20 (ESV) Paul not only shared the Good News of Jesus with Timothy, he also invited Timothy to join him on his second missionary journey. Paul saw what Timothy could be and what Timothy should be and passionately drew out the best in Timothy. Paul invested in Timothy’s spiritual development. Timothy eventually became the pastor of the church at Ephesus. Think about someone in your life whom God used to draw out the best in you. Think about the person God used in your life to encourage you to become a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. As a person of understanding, he or she was willing to draw out the potential God has placed inside of you. Will you be a person of understanding that the Lord can use to benefit others? Following Jesus Every Day, Stephen Trammell

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Encouragement Proverbs Vision

Unlimited Potential

Barnabas Encouragement On Mission

Encouraging Others

“And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus.” Acts 9:26-27 (ESV) Everybody needs encouragement. Living in a fallen world can be brutal and depressing. You can get down on yourself so quickly. What a blessing to have someone come alongside you to bring out the best in you! How refreshing when God brings someone into your path to encourage you! God empowers you by His Holy Spirit to extend the ministry of encouragement. You can be an encourager by identifying the activity of God in a person’s life. As you walk with others in their journey of faith, encourage them by sharing specific items you see in their life that adds value to the Kingdom of God. Think of the people God has brought into your life along the way to encourage you in your walk with God. Aren’t you thankful that God cared enough about you to splash Living Water in your life through the encouragement of others? Barnabas existed to bring glory to God by encouraging others to reach their full redemptive potential. His most pronounced assignment was that of encouraging the Apostle Paul in his journey of faith. Paul’s reputation of being a persecutor of the church prior to his conversion did not give him much favor with the people of God. Barnabas was willing to risk major ridicule and rejection in order to stand in the gap for Paul. It’s our turn now! Let’s be dispensers of encouragement! Drawing Near, Stephen Trammell Lead Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Encouragement Friends Trials

Friends Sent by God

“And we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this.” 1 Thessalonians 3:2-3 (ESV) Paul had a deep abiding love for the church at Thessalonica. The new believers were developing in their faith and understanding of God’s will. After a season of separation, Paul sent Timothy to reconnect with the congregation in order to strengthen and encourage them in the midst of their trials. Living out the Christian faith in the sin dominating culture of Thessalonica was not easy. The believers were persecuted for their faith in Jesus. The magnetic pull of their former lifestyle continued to pull at them. The believers were unsettled by the persistence of their trials. Timothy invested time and energy in them to strengthen their faith and to encourage their faithfulness. God does not intend for you to live the Christian life without His enablement. God has empowered you by the Person of the Holy Spirit living in you. Stand firm in your faith by surrendering to the control of the Holy Spirit. Allow Him to fuel your faith and to ignite your enthusiasm. You need Christian friends to live the life God has for you in this fallen world. Don’t fly solo! Don’t try to accomplish God’s will without the people God brings into your life to encourage you and to strengthen you. Remember, to have a friend, you need to be a friend. As you serve others, watch how God brings godly friends into your life to encourage you along the way. Take a moment to list and thank God for the Christian friends He has brought into your life. Drawing Near, Stephen Trammell Lead Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Encouragement Josiah Teachable

Be Teachable

“Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, and walked in the ways of David his father; and he did not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.” 2 Chronicles 34:1-2 (ESV) Be Teachable. Can you imagine an eight-year-old child becoming the President of the United States of America? That’s hard to fathom. Yet, in the sovereignty of God, Josiah became the king of Judah when he was the tender age of eight. God enabled Josiah to reign for thirty-one years. How does an eight-year-old rule his kingdom? He doesn’t by himself. Josiah surrounds himself with people who can help. He willingly brings people around him who can do what he can’t and who can exercise gifts that he may not personally have. Josiah becomes an effective king by being teachable. Josiah allows others to speak into his life. You need four people in your life to help you reach your God-given potential. You need a “Paul” who will mentor you. You need a “Timothy” to invest your life in. You need a “Barnabas” to encourage you and to bring out the best in you. And you need a “Nathan” to speak the truth in love to you. Are you teachable? Do you allow God to stretch you and mold you and grow you? Are you willing to allow others to get close enough to you in order to learn from them? Ask God to bring a Paul, a Timothy, a Barnabas, and a Nathan into your life. Be willing to be a Paul, to be a Timothy, to be a Barnabas, and to be a Nathan in someone’s life. Seek to add value to others as you allow the life of Christ to be expressed through you. Drawing Near, Stephen Trammell Lead Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Barnabas Encouragement Ministry

Dispensers of Encouragement

Post author By Stephen Trammell
Post date April 21, 2013
6 Comments on Dispensers of Encouragement

“When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.” Acts 9:26-27 (NIV) Everybody needs encouragement. Living in a fallen world can be brutal and depressing. You can get down on yourself so quickly. What a blessing to have someone come alongside you to bring out the best in you! How refreshing when God brings someone into your path to encourage you! God empowers you by His Holy Spirit to extend the ministry of encouragement. You can be an encourager by identifying the activity of God in a person’s life. As you walk with others in their journey of faith, encourage them by sharing specific items you see in their life that adds value to the kingdom of God. Think of the people God has brought into your life along the way to encourage you in your walk with God. Aren’t you thankful that God cared enough about you to splash Living Water in your life through the encouragement of others? Barnabas existed to bring glory to God by encouraging others to reach their full redemptive potential. His most pronounced assignment was that of encouraging the Apostle Paul in his journey of faith. Paul’s reputation of being a persecutor of the church prior to his conversion did not give him much favor with the people of God. Barnabas was willing to risk major ridicule and rejection in order to stand in the gap for Paul. It’s our turn now! Let’s be dispensers of encouragement! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Adversity Encouragement Faith

Encouraged by Faith

“Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith. For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.” 1 Thessalonians 3:7-8 (NIV) God allows trials to come into your life to reveal your faith. Whatever is on the inside of you will come out during trials. When trials come, your faith is featured in the display window of life. If doubt, bitterness, and resentment are lingering inside of you, they will seep out during the season of trials. God will purge you of anything that does not bring honor to His Name. God also uses trials to develop your faith. As you know, God does not waste the trials He allows into your life. God will develop your faith to match the assignment He has for you. The testing of your faith will develop perseverance (Jas. 1:2-3). Spiritual muscles are built through the resistance trials produce. Without pain, there is no growth. God will convert the pain into something beneficial to accomplish His plan. Paul, Silas, and Timothy were immensely encouraged by the faith of the church of the Thessalonians. Their faith had been revealed through the trials they endured. Living out their Christian faith in a pagan culture was not without resistance. God developed their faith to match the assignment He had for them. Standing firm in the Lord was their faith response to living in an anti-Christian environment. What do the trials you are facing reveal about your faith? Are you standing firm in the Lord? You have the Holy Spirit living in you making intercession on your behalf. Jesus is at the right hand of our Father interceding for you. No need to retreat. Advance through adversity by standing firm in the Lord. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Discernment Encouragement Potential

Unlocking Potential

“The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.” Proverbs 20:5 (NIV) God brings people into our lives to help us see and seize the potential God has placed inside of us. When you allow someone to get close enough to you so they can know you personally, it creates a unique relationship for your potential to be unleashed. God allows others to hold up a mirror before us to see what we haven’t been seeing. Think about the people God has brought into your life at specific moments to help you realize your potential. These wonderful people believed in you and saw things in you that you did not even detect. They had the ability to draw out the best in you. How refreshing to have someone love you and to believe in you! Jesus demonstrated the value of investing in others. He helped the disciples recognize their potential and then unleashed their potential in ministry. For example, Jesus believed in Matthew, the tax collector, and enabled him to become a fully devoted disciple. Jesus believed in Peter and helped him to become a vibrant leader of the New Testament church. Jesus can take a nobody and make him or her a somebody even when everybody fails to see the potential resident within. Jesus specializes in helping ordinary people do the extraordinary. Are you available to draw out the purposes of a person’s heart? Are you willing to invest in another person’s life at the level of seeing their potential and helping them seize their God-given potential? God wants to use you in bringing out the best in others. You can become a conduit of blessing in the lives of others. Ask God to show you an individual to invest in. The person may be a family member, a friend, or a co-worker. Seek to draw out the best in that person for the glory of God. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Encouragement Proverbs Vision

Unlimited Potential

“The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.” Proverbs 20:5 (ESV) How do you view other people? Do you settle for what they see in themselves or do you see what could be and what should be in their lives? God has saved you and sanctified you so that you can help others reach their God-given potential. God has placed eternity in their hearts and He has infused them with purpose. As God brings you alongside them, you are to be a person of understanding. As a person of understanding, you have the God-given capacity to draw out the best in them. You can help those God places in your sphere of influence to reach their unlimited potential. “I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, so that I too may be cheered by news of you. 20 For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare.” Philippians 2:19-20 (ESV) Paul not only shared the Good News of Jesus with Timothy, he also invited Timothy to join him on his second missionary journey. Paul saw what Timothy could be and what Timothy should be and passionately drew out the best in Timothy. Paul invested in Timothy’s spiritual development. Timothy eventually became the pastor of the church at Ephesus. Think about someone in your life whom God used to draw out the best in you. Think about the person God used in your life to encourage you to become a fully devoted follower of Jesus Christ. As a person of understanding, he or she was willing to draw out the potential God has placed inside of you. Will you be a person of understanding that the Lord can use to benefit others? Chronological Bible Reading Plan: (Day 160: Proverbs 19-21) Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Adversity Encouragement Faith

Encouraged by Faith

“Therefore, brothers, in all our distress and persecution we were encouraged about you because of your faith. For now we really live, since you are standing firm in the Lord.” 1 Thess 3:7-8 (NIV) God allows trials to come into your life to reveal your faith. Whatever is on the inside of you will come out during trials. When trials come, your faith is featured in the display window of life. If doubt, bitterness, and resentment are lingering inside of you, they will seep out during the season of trials. God will purge you of anything that does not bring honor to His Name. God also uses trials to develop your faith. As you know, God does not waste the trials He allows into your life. God will develop your faith to match the assignment He has for you. The testing of your faith will develop perseverance (James 1:2-3). Spiritual muscles are built through the resistance trials produce. Without pain, there is no growth. God will convert the pain into something beneficial to accomplish His plan. Paul, Silas, and Timothy were immensely encouraged by the faith of the church of the Thessalonians. Their faith had been revealed through the trials they endured. Living out their Christian faith in a pagan culture was not without resistance. God developed their faith to match the assignment He had for them. Standing firm in the Lord was their faith response to living in an anti-Christian environment. What do the trials you are facing reveal about your faith? Are you standing firm in the Lord? You have the Holy Spirit living in you making intercession on your behalf. Jesus is at the right hand of our Father interceding for you. No need to retreat. Advance through adversity by standing firm in the Lord. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Barnabas Encouragement Ministry

Dispensers of Encouragement

Post author By Stephen Trammell
Post date April 17, 2011
17 Comments on Dispensers of Encouragement

Discernment Encouragement Potential

Unlocking Potential

Barnabas Encouragement On Mission

Encouraging Others

“When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.” Acts 9:26-27 (NIV) Everybody needs encouragement. Living in a fallen world can be brutal and depressing. You can get down on yourself so quickly. What a blessing to have someone come alongside you to bring out the best in you! How refreshing when God brings someone into your path to encourage you! God empowers you by His Holy Spirit to extend the ministry of encouragement. You can be an encourager by identifying the activity of God in a person’s life. As you walk with others in their journey of faith, encourage them by sharing specific items you see in their life that adds value to the Kingdom of God. Think of the people God has brought into your life along the way to encourage you in your walk with God. Aren’t you thankful that God cared enough about you to splash Living Water in your life through the encouragement of others? Barnabas existed to bring glory to God by encouraging others to reach their full redemptive potential. His most pronounced assignment was that of encouraging the Apostle Paul in his journey of faith. Paul’s reputation of being a persecutor of the church prior to his conversion did not give him much favor with the people of God. Barnabas was willing to risk major ridicule and rejection in order to stand in the gap for Paul. It’s our turn now! Let’s be dispensers of encouragement! Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Encouragement Friends Trials

Friends Sent by God

“We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God’s fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.” 1 Thess 3:2-3 (NIV) Paul had a deep abiding love for the church at Thessalonica. The new believers were developing in their faith and understanding of God’s will. After a season of separation, Paul sent Timothy to reconnect with the congregation in order to strengthen and encourage them in the midst of their trials. Living out the Christian faith in the sin dominating culture of Thessalonica was not easy. The believers were persecuted for their faith in Jesus. The magnetic pull of their former lifestyle continued to pull at them. The believers were unsettled by the persistence of their trials. Timothy invested time and energy in them to strengthen their faith and to encourage their faithfulness. God does not intend for you to live the Christian life without His enablement. God has empowered you by the Person of the Holy Spirit living in you. Stand firm in your faith by surrendering to the control of the Holy Spirit. Allow Him to fuel your faith and to ignite your enthusiasm. You need Christian friends to live the life God has for you in this fallen world. Don’t fly solo! Don’t try to accomplish God’s will without the people God brings into your life to encourage you and to strengthen you. Remember, to have a friend, you need to be a friend. As you serve others, watch how God brings godly friends into your life to encourage you along the way. Take a moment to list and thank God for the Christian friends He has brought into your life. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Encouragement Josiah Teachable

Be Teachable

“Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.” 2 Chron 34:1-2 (NIV) Be Teachable. Can you imagine an eight-year-old child becoming the President of the United States of America? That’s hard to fathom. Yet, in the sovereignty of God, Josiah became the king of Judah when he was the tender age of eight. God enabled Josiah to reign for thirty-one years. How does an eight-year-old rule his kingdom? He doesn’t by himself. Josiah surrounds himself with people who can help. He willingly brings people around him who can do what he can’t and who can exercise gifts that he may not personally have. Josiah becomes an effective king by being teachable. Josiah allows others to speak into his life. You need four people in your life to help you reach your God-given potential. You need a “Paul” who will mentor you. You need a “Timothy” to invest your life in. You need a “Barnabas” to encourage you and to bring out the best in you. And you need a “Nathan” to speak the truth in love to you. Are you teachable? Do you allow God to stretch you and mold you and grow you? Are you willing to allow others to get close enough to you in order to learn from them? Ask God to bring a Paul, a Timothy, a Barnabas, and a Nathan into your life. Be willing to be a Paul, to be a Timothy, to be a Barnabas, and to be a Nathan in someone’s life. Seek to add value to others as you allow the life of Christ to be expressed through you. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor Follow me on twitter at: http://twitter.com/stephentrammell

Barnabas Encouragement Josiah Mentoring Nathan Paul Teachable Timothy

Potential Essentials (1)

“Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or to the left.” 2 Chron 34:1-2 (NIV) Be Teachable. Can you imagine an eight year old child becoming the President of the United States of America? That’s hard to fathom. Yet, in the sovereignty of God, Josiah became the king of Judah when he was the tender age of eight. God enabled Josiah to reign for thirty-one years. How does an eight year old rule his kingdom? He doesn’t by himself. Josiah surrounds himself with people who can help. He willingly brings people around him who can do what he can’t and who can exercise gifts that he may not personally have. Josiah becomes an effective king by being teachable. Josiah allows others to speak into his life. You need four people in your life to help you reach your God-given potential. You need a “Paul” who will mentor you. You need a “Timothy” to invest your life in. You need a “Barnabas” to encourage you and to bring out the best in you. And you need a “Nathan” to speak the truth in love to you. Are you teachable? Do you allow God to stretch you and mold you and grow you? Are you willing to allow others to get close enough to you in order to learn from them? Ask God to bring a Paul, a Timothy, a Barnabas, and a Nathan into your life. Be willing to be a Paul, to be a Timothy, to be a Barnabas, and to be a Nathan in someone’s life. Seek to add value to others as you allow the life of Christ to be expressed through you. Pursuing God, Stephen Trammell Executive Pastor