The Fight to Not Grow Discouraged
By Dave Navarra, Area Director at World Vision & Barnabas Sacramento Leadership Team Member
In a world where challenges seem to multiply daily, the fight against discouragement is real. I vividly remember a few years back, when I was serving as a Pastor in California, I took my first trip to Africa to evaluate some overseas partnerships for my Church. It was there, walking a dirt path with a group of leaders, that I heard a phrase that has stayed with me: “The greatest threat many of us face is allowing ourselves to get discouraged.” This phrase was one of the many gifts I received on that trip, a simple insight that has served as an internal gauge for my own life and a mission to live out with those I partner with.
Personally, I’m paying greater attention to the things that discourage me and investing energy in the things that keep my soul encouraged. This has a direct effect on my leadership, marriage, and work. But I won’t stop there—I want to help lead communities that bring encouragement to others and do it at scale.
For me, that’s been the Barnabas Group and World Vision. Few local groups are like the Barnabas Group. Each year, the group offers an uncommon gift: business and ministry leaders helping ministries identify and tackle significant challenges. We’ve found this to be the type of authentic encouragement through a strategic process that leaders and ministries long for but rarely receive with no strings attached. For the Christian business leaders in our community with wisdom and experience to offer, this is a match made in heaven. In doing so, we embody the group’s name—Barnabas, derived from Barnabas in scripture, known for the ways he consistently supported and uplifted others, earning him the nickname "Son of Encouragement" (Acts 4:36).
The fight to stay encouraged is one we are all familiar with, but perhaps none more so than those living off less than $2.15 a day around the world. With less than 6% of philanthropic giving going abroad, global leaders and the populations that World Vision serves are in a daily fight for hope—often represented by questions as basic as "Will my family eat today?"
As World Vision Area Director in California, I have the privilege of connecting major donors to impactful global work that brings encouragement. These donor partners often go beyond writing checks; they create communities of encouragement. For example, they invite World Vision country leaders, who often oversee a staff of 500+, for dinners in their homes when global staff are traveling through. They join global workers on Zoom calls for updates or at national gatherings, asking about their families, their souls, and their work. They bring encouragement.
So, how can we fight to stay encouraged and help those around us?
Watch your encouragement and discouragement barometer and adjust where necessary and quickly. Use your influence locally and globally to inspire others who, unknown to you, may very well be on the brink of utter discouragement. We can create ripple effects of hope and encouragement that often have an impact that is hard to see but is known when experienced firsthand.
I’ll never forget a moment in Zambia when we had finished helping a woman named Anna do her daily water walk, which consumes eight hours daily for her. As we were leaving, a donor on the trip named Joyce, in her late 70s, pulled Anna in for an embrace and said, “It’s going to be okay.” What Anna didn’t know is that Joyce had written a $1 million check to bring water systems to Anna’s entire community and beyond. Hope was on the way, but before the water systems would arrive, Joyce knew that what Anna needed today was to stay encouraged as she endured 8-hour walks for a little longer.
Together, we can create a world where encouragement is abundant, and hope is on the horizon. Be Barnabas. Who do you need to encourage today?
About The Author: Dave Navarra
Dave Navarra feels privileged to serve as the Area Director for World Vision, a Christian humanitarian organization helping children, families, and their communities overcome poverty and injustice across nearly 100 countries. Dave utilizes his extensive 17-year background in Pastoral Ministry and non-profit leadership to bridge the gap between empowering local partners and fostering global impact. He holds a Master of Divinity from Fuller Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s degree in communications from Chico State.
Dave’s driving passion is to facilitate connections between generous partners and impactful initiatives that bring joy and impact to all involved. In 2006, Dave founded the non-profit organization You Are Loved with the hope of conveying God’s love to a world searching for love.
Personal – Dave married his high school sweetheart, Katie, who is a Marriage and family therapist with a private practice in Folsom, where they reside. They love getting to raise their two sons and pray for a growing family. Before settling down in Folsom in 2018, Dave and Katie spent time overseas in Belgium, serving at an International Church and helping lead a global missionary retreat center to provide relief while also getting a gauge on global Gospel needs.