Life's Inanities and Ironies

We live in days that feel eerily like the days of Gideon. Moral confusion, cultural pressure, family struggles, and open hostility toward biblical truth surround us. Many conservative Christians look at the headlines and quietly ask the same question Gideon voiced: “If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?” (Judges 6:13). Yet the story in Judges 6:11–24 does not leave us in despair. It shows how the God of the Bible calls and equips His people—not because we are strong, but precisely because we are weak. The scene opens in crisis. Israel is starving under Midianite oppression. Gideon is threshing wheat—not on an open floor, but hidden inside a winepress, terrified the enemy will spot him and steal what little he has. Then the Angel of the Lord appears and speaks the most shocking words in the chapter:   “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” (v. 12) Gideon is cowering in fear, the youngest son of a weak family in the weakest clan of Manasseh. Yet G...

  We often mistake "encouragement" for a simple "like" on social media or a polite nod in the church foyer. But if we look at the life of a man named Joseph—better known by his nickname, Barnabas —we see that biblical encouragement is something much more radical. It is a sacrificial, risk-taking, life-altering ministry. In Acts 4:36-37 , we are introduced to the man who would become the "gold standard" for what it means to build up the Body of Christ. " Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus , whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means ‘ son of encouragement ’), sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet." How can we move beyond being merely "polite" and start being a "Barnabas" to those around us? Here are three ways to cultivate the heart of an encourager. 1. Encouragement Starts with Your Hands, Not Just Your Lips It is telling that the very first thing the Bible records about the "Son of En...