As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. Acts 13:2

In our text for today, we read about the Holy Spirit instructing leaders of the first century church to separate Paul and Barnabas for an assignment to which He had called them. That may look like a simple instruction, but it is definitely something that we can learn a lot from.

Like Paul and Barnabas, when we come to the saving knowledge of Christ and are translated from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of God’s dear son, we all have gifts and experiences that God wants us to use to advance His kingdom. Paul’s gift was teaching. Your gift may be leadership, innovation, administration or caring for others. Whatever gift God has given you, there is a kingdom assignment with your name on it, involving the use of that gift to share the love of Christ with others.

Your kingdom assignment may not be revealed to you automatically as soon as you become a child of God. Usually, kingdom assignments get discovered over time, in the course of one walking with God. The event from which our text is taken did not happen immediately after Paul got saved. Actually, it happened about ten years after Paul’s Damascus encounter. It took time.

That is how it often works for all of us. We walk with Jesus over time and in the process, He guides us into the assignment he has earmarked for us in His kingdom. The formula for finding kingdom assignment was clearly stated by Jesus in Matthew 4:19 when He said, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men’. If you keep walking with Jesus and fixing your gaze on Him, He will eventually usher you into the things that He wants you to do for Him.

VERY SERIOUS: As a child of God take your responsibility of winning souls serious. Approach every task in the local church with unwavering commitment.