In Acts chapter 1, the now 11 apostles are in waiting in Jerusalem after having returned from witnessing Jesus’ resurrection. The apostles are gathered in a room together, along with the women that followed Jesus and His brothers. All of these people are gathered together, praying in earnest. The last month and a half has been a whirlwind for these people, with Judas betrayal, his suicide, plus Jesus' death, burial, resurrection, and now His ascension. Peter stands and points out that a new apostle must be chosen to replace Judas.

Imagine you are one of the men that have been following Jesus since the beginning. You aren’t one of His core twelve disciples, but you’ve been there since the start. You wish you had more time with Him, to learn from and speak to Him, but at least you got to be around Him more than most. Maybe you’re fine with your role, and accept not being one of the twelve Jesus chose. On the other hand, maybe you are a little envious of the “real apostles” that Jesus is so close with. Regardless of how you felt, you held fast to your faith in Jesus and accepted your supposedly lesser role. But now, Jesus is gone, He’s died, come back, and then gone into heaven, leaving His followers alone again. A new apostle must be chosen, and you and one other man – Mathias – are selected to be chosen between. You think this must be your reward for your faithfulness and patience, and that God is finally going to “promote” you to being a member of the twelve. Your faith was tested, but you held strong and followed Jesus nonetheless. But there's one problem, the apostles cast lots to determine God’s will, and they land on Mathias. Maybe they cast again to be sure, and again and again, but every time the lots fall to Mathias. After everything you’ve been through, from leaving your life to follow Jesus, to sticking with Him even when you felt lesser or left out, you are left out of the twelve once again. You are Joseph Barsabbas, you are the 13th apostle.

Have you ever felt like Barsabbas? Left out? Forgotten? Like you’re not good enough? Have you ever felt like God failed you? Or that He didn’t answer your prayers? After Acts 1, we don’t know much about Barsabbas. We don’t know if he fell away after not being chosen, or if he remained faithful despite his disappointment. What we do know is that God has a plan, and his plan and timing are perfect. Proverbs 3:5-6: says: "Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." God has a plan for everyone, but sometimes our own plans, or even prayers, don’t match up with His plan. (Proverbs 19:21: “Many plans are in a man’s heart, But the counsel of the Lord will stand”). Barsabbas may have felt angry, he may have felt disappointed, and he may have felt like the 13th apostle; But the truth is God had other plans for Him, and God’s plan never fails. Maybe God had other plans for Barsabbas, and used him in ways he never would’ve imagined on the night Mathias was chosen over him. Maybe Barsabbas being one of the twelve didn’t happen for reasons we’ll never know. If Barsabbas trusted God’s plan through without ceasing, then there is no doubt that good things came to Him. The point is, if we trust in God, we’ll never be left out of His plans. He’ll always do what's best for us. He loves you, He cares about you, He has a plan for you, He never forgets you, and He’ll leave you as the 13th apostle.