Ministry Nuggets
Below are various ministry truths I had learned throughout the year.
Nugget #1: anointed vs not anointed
God's Anointing is the supernatural ability to do God's Works. When one is anointed, that person is
able to do God's Works easily and to withstand whatever pressure the ministry draws. That person is
often able do God's Works faster than expected, able to deal with problems, able to deal with
problematic people, and remain standing despite spiritual attacks.
Those whom brag about their works and argue that they are doing God's Work are usually not anointed.
They may brag about their endurances to do hard works - contradicting that they are anointed
(anointed Servants do God's Work easily).
Those whom are anointed have no need to brag. Their works speak for itself - no need
to prove anything. Examine long-time fruitful ministers. Do they brag about themselves?
No. They do not because they do not need to prove anything.
Nugget #2: serve in another man's ministry first
It is spiritual pride to think one can start a ministry without any prior experience. Ministry is
hard work and there is no need to make it harder by "reinventing the wheel". That is, to learn what
had been learned by others. If you are inexperienced in serving Jesus, serve Jesus in another man's
ministry. So often a problem pops up and you would have a hard time dealing with it alone.
But often the leader would know what to do and advice accordingly. Learn from those whom gone
before you.
Nugget #3: calling does not mean rush into ministry
When one is called to lead a ministry, it does not mean one should hastily jump into ministry.
There are at least 5 steps before leading a ministry.
-
Called by God
Only the recipient truly know. Again, calling alone is not sufficient to jump into ministry.
-
Calling confirmed by leadership
The leadership of the recipient senses - in prayer - that the recipient is called.
-
Preparation to lead a ministry
The recipient may or may not be prepared. Preparation may include theological training, serving in
another man's ministry, etc. The more prominence the ministry, more preparation is needed.
-
Confirmation by leadership
The recipient is confirmed into ministry by the leadership.
-
Accountability
The recipient is accountable to someone (or group of people) who has gone beforehand. There is no
need to "reinvent the wheel". Many ministry problems arise and those whom had gone before often
know easy solutions.
If you are convinced you are called, but the leadership do not recognize the calling, it means that
you are not ready. Ask Jesus on how to prepare for ministry and wait for the leadership to
recognize your calling. Do not jump into ministry without the leadership's blessing.
Nugget #4: burden vs calling
A burden for a need is not the same as being called into ministry. If you have a burden for a need,
keep on praying and ask Jesus on what He wants you to do. He may want you to lead a ministry, to
help someone else leads a ministry, or just pray (pray for Jesus to raise up laborers for the
harvest, pray for an existing ministry to extend its vision, etc). Do not just jump in, but at the
same time, do not waste time. Get smarter about how to fulfill the need. Ask Jesus what
preparation you should do.
Nugget #5: ministry is about instilling the life of Jesus, not about building programs
True Christian ministry is about bringing the life of Jesus to unbelievers and discipling believers.
It is about helping people to know Jesus more and more. It is not about building a program. The
mentality, "build it and people will come", is not correct (unless Jesus specifically imparts this
idea for the ministry).
True Christian service is not about serving Jesus (although if you are not doing anything for
Jesus, serving Jesus in another man's ministry is a good starting point), but about partnering with
Jesus to reach out and touch a lost and dying world. Christian servants are to have a life of
prayer and prayfully allow Jesus to reign in their lives and in their ministry. It is by God's
Strength and Grace, that Christian servants are able to stand and to do God's Works.
The most important thing for Christian servants is to have a living faith walk with Jesus. As they
grow, the people they serve will be impacted and challenged to grow in their faith walk with Jesus.
Nugget #6: a fruitful ministry has good impact, not large size
It is erroneous to count how many people the ministry reaches out to. What is important is how
much impact the ministry has - how many people and how deep people's lives were changed by the
ministry.
For example, suppose the ministry is a church. A church, that has 100 missionaries - some may be
missionary churches - and has only 100 members, has more impact than a church that has 10000
deadbeats (just warm the church's pew) on Sunday's mornings.
Nugget #7: the ministry's foundation consist of strong relationships
The ministry's foundation is relationship with Jesus being the chief cornerstone. Seek unity via
diversity, not conformity. Let prayer be an important part of the ministry. As Christian servants
draw closer to Jesus, they will be closer to each others.
Nugget #8: God needs no practice run
God needs no practice run to build a ministry. If a person is truly anointed and proceeds
correctly through the 5 steps mentioned earlier in nugget #2, that person will build a lasting
ministry correctly the first time. The ministry will have the correct foundation to weather
storms.
Nugget #9: go around those whom are doing ministry without correct startup procedure
If someone is prideful and brag about doing ministry without the leadership's blessing, walk around
that person. Storms will arise and pride, in that person, will be shaken. Relax, keep your
distance from that person, and watch what happens when the storms come.
Raymond
Last modified on 8/25/17
© Copyright 2017