We first meet Barnabas in the Book of Acts, when we learn that there was one among the believers whose name was Joseph. This Joseph must have been a unique man, for we are told that the apostles called him Barnabas, which means "Son of Encouragement." (Acts 4:36, NIV) He must have been a special man, indeed, for the recorder of the acts to note his "nickname" among the believers, and further, to explain what that Hebrew name meant in Greek. It is evident that Barnabas was a man who cared for the needs of others, and he had earned the designation of the Encourager.

We actually get to see Barnabas in action in Acts 9 when Saul, escaping persecution in Damascus, goes to Jerusalem seeking fellowship and safety. We are told that the believers there, however, "were afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple." Evidently, their memories were still fresh. They remembered that Saul was one of those Pharisees who were persecuting the church. He had stood consenting to the stoning of Stephen, although he had not taken part in the action himself. They knew that he had gone to Damascus to imprison the believers who were there. This was not someone they wished to spend time with! Yet Barnabas, "took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them-how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus." (Acts 9:27) Saul, still a new believer, might have simply left Jerusalem in discouragement had it not been for Barnabas, the Encourager. Instead, "Saul stayed with them... [in Jerusalem]" (Acts 9:28) We later find that the Apostles in Jerusalem wanted Bamabas to go to Antioch to help the church there. But instead of going directly to Antioch, Barnabas took a side trip to Tarsus. He sought out Saul and convinced him to come to Antioch as well, and the two stayed a year, meeting with and teaching the church there.

From this point on, the two appear as a team with the scriptures often mentioning Barnabas' name first. After they were commissioned as Apostles and sent on the first missionary journey, we begin to see a change in the order of their names. More and more often, Paul is mentioned first. Finally, in preparation for the second journey to visit and encourage the churches founded during their earlier trip, Barnabas suggests that they let his nephew, John Mark, accompany them. We know that Paul disagreed with this plan, and as a result, Barnabas and Paul separated. Barnabas returned to his native Cyprus, taking John Mark with him, while Paul traveled again to Asia Minor where he visited the churches and then received the vision to cross into Macedonia. He later established the churches on the Greek peninsula: Phillipi, Thessalonica, Berea, and, of course, Corinth.

There are some who claim that Barnabas had had his chance. He could have spent his life as Paul's co-worker and co-apostle. They support their contentions with the fact that after their separation in the Book of Acts, Barnabas basically disappears from the New Testament. He is only mentioned three more times. These critics dismiss Barnabas as if he were no longer of use to the Lord. Only Paul now counted. Can this be true? Could the one who had earned the notice of the believers and apostles in Jerusalem really have become useless?

A careful study of the later epistles shows that this is not really the case. Barnabas was the Encourager. He was the one who would come alongside a believer and literally encourage them to "be all that they could be." Once this had been accomplished, he went on to whomever the Lord would send his way, and, again, encourage that one to begin to use the gift God had given him/her. Looking carefully at I Corinthians 9, we notice that Paul, in defending his ministry, outlines the freedoms of the other apostles, then, in verse 6 includes himself and Barnabas, even though the Corinthian Church had not been established by Barnabas. (Paul had gone to Corinth after the disagreement with Barnabas.) Why, in writing to this Church, would Paul mention Barnabas in such a positive way, unless all the churches at that time knew of Barnabas and held him in high esteem? Barnabas surely had not been abandoned by God, but was still being used where God had placed him.

Later, in II Timothy 4, Paul, writing from prison, asks Timothy to get Mark (John Mark) and bring him along with him to come to visit Paul, because "he is profitable to me for the ministry." Remember that when Barnabas went to Cyprus, he took John Mark with him. The young man who had once departed, who was useless for the ministry is now profitable to Paul. Evidently Barnabas not only encouraged Paul and stimulated him to use the gifts the Spirit had given him, but, faithful to his calling, he did the same thing with John Mark.

So, what are we about? For many years, we, too, have felt our calling to encourage the believers in whatever circumstances they may find themselves. We have often had fellowship with others on a one-to-one basis. We feel that the Lord desires us to reach out more widely. Too many believers know the Lord, but get caught up in their daily activities, and often live under the condemnation of the Enemy in spite of the promise of Romans 8:1. It is our hope that the Lord will use this website to encourage you, to lift you up, to stimulate you to be about letting the Lord do what He would want to do in you. We do not want to be "preachy," but we will strive to expose Satan's efforts to throw obstacles in the believer's path to frustrate the Lord's working in him/her.

So, that is what we're about: to be encouragers to believers in this age in the same way that Barnabas was in his age. If you agree with this vision, we ask for your prayers that we will keep our hearts open to Him that we might convey the Lord's encouragement to His children.