Introducing Project Barnabas
Originally shared at our August 13th joint worship service.
Dear Members of St. Paul, St. Matthew’s, and St. John’s:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Today we are gathered for the installation of a new gospel minister at our school and to join together in fellowship. We are reminded once again that our Lord is in control of all things and has a plan to prosper each and every one of us. Today we also see the importance of Christian education and encouraging our children to pursue the public ministry.
Why is Christian education so important? Our school strives to offer a Christ-centered curriculum so that students will learn about the world that God created, see how our faith is woven into each aspect of learning, and find purpose and meaning through God’s will for our lives. We also have a need for pastors and teachers within our synod, and our school helps plant some of the ministerial seeds. Some of us as parents see the joys firsthand as our children grow in their faith; however, many of us do not have children enrolled in our school. We may feel cut-off because we want to contribute more, but we don’t know how. This is where Scripture provides an answer.
In the Book of Acts, we’re introduced to a man named Joseph, a believer from Cyprus. He’s better known by his nickname—Barnabas. He gave from his property to support the work of the church. He brought a gift of relief from the congregation in Antioch to the Christians in Judea enduring a famine. He accompanied Paul on his first mission journey. He proclaimed the gospel, and the Bible calls him “a good man who was full of the Holy Spirit and faith” (Acts 11:24). His name, Barnabas, means “son of encouragement.”
God richly blesses His people. In His infinite wisdom, He disperses blessings amongst the people and gives us all more than we truly deserve. Jesus teaches us in the parable of the workers in the vineyard in Matthew 20:1-15 that God has given all of us different gifts, but every believer has the greatest gift of all—salvation through Christ Jesus. Encouraged by this greatest gift, we can encourage others with the other gifts God has given us.
One gift that has been on everyone’s mind these days is money. It can’t be helped. We see price changes everywhere we go. Our dollars need to go a lot further now than in the past. School costs have risen too. To help families defray tuition costs for St. Paul’s Lutheran School, we are introducing Project Barnabas. This project will allow any member of our congregations to “adopt” a student to help assist in tuition payments. This would be not only for students of St. Paul’s but any student of our congregations who continues their Christian education at a WELS area high school or prep school, Martin Luther College, or Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary.
Not everyone has the gifts to “preach like Paul” or stand in front of a classroom of children teaching them multiple subjects all centered around Christ, but we can all help. As the hymnist reminds us in “Hark! The Voice of Jesus Crying”, we can lead the little children to the Savior’s waiting arms. We can contribute our time, talents, or treasures. There’s a plethora of ways that we can help our students to learn about their Savior and, Lord willing, one day they will be our future pastors, teachers, and staff ministers feeling the elation during their installation service.
I believe that God has immeasurably blessed me so that I can, in return, bless and help others. If you would like to help contribute to Project Barnabas or would like more information, please contact me, Pastor Limpert, or Troy Gander, Education Board chairman.
In Christ,
Matt Wurster, St. Paul’s Lutheran School Principal
mwurster@stpaulhw.com | 608 393-2279
