[Thursday's Devotional] - Christians of Antioch

Christians of Antioch Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples were called Christians first at Antioch. Acts 11: 25-26 [NIV] Barnabas demonstrates his leadership and his nurturing when he seeks out Saul, who has returned home to Tarsus after the Hellenistic Jews tried to kill him.  Saul appears to have been in relative obscurity during this time; he has disappeared off the records for several years.   Barnabas goes looking for him and brings him back to the centre of the mission, where he could develop his teaching and leadership skills.  Barnabas had the wisdom to know where Saul's gifts and abilities can be developed, and he allows Saul to shine to the glory of God.   When we teach youngsters to cook we have to give them time and space.  Yes we could make the cake in half the time, with half the mess and probably get a better result, but unless we stand back, allow them to make mistakes and develop, they will not learn to cook. Where are the next leaders of our church – how can we encourage them, how can we give them space to grow and best use their gifts?  Sometimes we need to stand back, sometimes we need to encourage, sometimes we need to intervene – but always to allow God's kingdom to flourish. Pray for our leaders of the future. Guy Mowbray   Twitter Website Copyright © 2016 St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email as a subscriber to the Daily Devotionals Our mailing address is: St. Matthew & St. Oswald's Church 1a New Street Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 7BE United Kingdom Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list Want to be added to our mailing list? - sign up here!