Day 31: Jesus, You Give Me A Ministry

I love serving the Lord. The most exciting part of ministry for me is to watch the Lord Jesus change lives. I love encouraging others to step out on the water and use their gifts. Joy fills my heart when I receive an email from someone who has read one of my books and gained a new hunger for God’s Word. I rejoice in watching others form deeper commitments to follow Christ. What an amazing opportunity to join the Lord Jesus in ministry, serve Him, and watch Him do “immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:20).

A natural outflow of the Spirit’s work in us is ministry. Sometimes we think we need to agonize over God’s will for us in ministry. And perhaps there is a wrestling at times because of a bend in the road when the Lord is taking us in a new direction. But for the most part, our ministry flows out of the Lord Jesus at work in our hearts. He gifts us through the indwelling Holy Spirit, and equips us for His work in and through us. We need to remember that we no longer belong to ourselves, but to Him. It’s His life. And He knows what He desires to accomplish in and through us. We also tend to divide our ideas of ministry into “full-time Christian service” and “secular work”. But ministry in the biblical sense of the word is always full-time. We “serve” the Lord whether we work in a store, an office, at home, or in the church.

One of my favorite passages of Scripture is 1 Corinthians 12:4-6, “There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit is the source of them all. There are different kinds of service, but we serve the same Lord. God works in different ways, but it is the same God who does the work in all of us.” These verses remind us that we are all different—our gifts are different, our ministries are different, and the effects of our ministries are different. For those of us who are leaders, we must be sensitive to these differences and give others the opportunity to use their gifts, and not try to bend people into carbon copies of ourselves. I have met certain people who resent others for not meeting their expectations and for going in unusual directions in ministry. In reality, these brave souls are trailblazers, and are simply following the Lord’s lead in their lives and using their gifts for His glory.

The Lord Jesus leads us all into ministry. We must keep our eyes open for His leading, and maintain a spiritually receptive heart, listening for His direction. When I get big ideas, I pay attention and write them down. I pray about the ministry ideas that are in my heart and mind. If they refuse to disappear, and get stronger, then I just step out on the water (in His strength and power of course), and go for it! The main passions for me in ministry are teaching God’s Word to others and encouraging a deep love and devotion for God and His Word. I long to see revival sweep across the world. And I often think of Jonothan Goforth’s words: “We can entertain no hope of a globe-encircling revival without there first being a back to the Bible movement.” I want others to have a great hunger and thirst for God’s Word. I want them to catch the excitement of having a verse leap off the page and pierce the heart. Why do I feel so strongly about these things? I believe the Lord Jesus has planted these desires deep in my heart over a period of many years alone with Him—studying His Word and walking and talking with Him. He may plant the same kinds of things in your heart. Or He may fill your heart with something else, depending on what He desires to do in and through you. But for all of us, we must heed the words of Paul to His disciple, Timothy: “…fulfill your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:5). How we fulfill our ministry will depend on the Spirit’s work in us. My friend Dillon is fulfilling his ministry right now through a trip to Haiti, helping those in need. Another friend is fulfilling her ministry praying for others. I have a friend who is a businesswoman, fulfilling her ministry reaching out to thousands of other people in her business. Another friend is raising her boys to be men of God—she’s like a Susannah Wesley—so faithful to her Lord. One of my dear friends paints in her studio, crafting amazing works of art that bless my heart and others as well. And our ministry may change over the years in the different seasons of our life. May we all carry the words of Paul in Acts 20:24 and think about them daily so that we may serve the Lord faithfully all our days on earth: “But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.”

My Response: Lord Jesus, that You for giving me a ministry. May I faithfully finish my course, and carry out all that You call me to do in service to You during my time on earth. In Jesus’ name, Amen.