iShineInMinistry

Luke 19:10 (NET)

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."

Craft days, bible studies, retreats and everything in between...the life of full-time ministry is one of joy, fun and activity. We have an assortment of ways to engage in ministry and spend time with the ladies and other people of our fellowship. We get to live in a place of love, faith grace and it's truly amazing. However, we need to make sure that all we do keeps God's plan of salvation at the center.

God came to seek and save the lost as our scripture mentions. We need to make sure that is our aim and focus while we put together another outreach, prayer meeting or other activity as we do the work of the ministry. We can be a church or organization full of activity that becomes a social club for Christians rather than a place that is serving the community to welcome those that need the Lord. The great events we do are lovely, but when Jesus is not at the center and the focus of the plans, we might as well just be a sorority of saved girls.

Let's make sure that our vision for ministry is intact with God's plan. Let's pray for the lost, invite them in and see what the Lord does through our faithfulness in serving Him. Enjoy your calling!!

Ephesians 4:1 (NKJV)

I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,

Have you ever met someone in ministry that just adores serving, even in the hard times? Someone that fully rests in the faithfulness of the Lord even in times of discouragement? I have a friend like that and every time she faces a new challenge (she oversees a ministry that deals with extreme cases) she is ready to pray, search God's word and ask for prayer to see things clearly. These people truly have a servant heart and are willing to do every part of the ministry, even the "not-so-fun" parts.

Then we meet other people. Their hearts are filled with annoyance over every single thing and they can find fault in all aspects of ministry. They complain about the potluck food, or the music being too loud, or that it's too hot, then it's too cold. Nothing about their words makes you feel like they enjoy their calling. Sometimes it is very difficult to see how they even got there, but we know the Lord has a plan.

Whether you are the first person I described or the second one, we need to surrender to our calling at all times. God has placed us here for a reason and we are to be an example of Him and be filled with Him. Our wrath has no place in ministry. We can't hurt the flock that the Lord has entrusted to us like that. We are held accountable by God for this!

Instead of being flustered, annoyed or angry all of the time, choose joy. Choose to see how God is using this season and this calling. Choose to obey and say yes to what He has planned for you in ministry. If you know you are way too far gone for this...take a season of to get your heart softened and in a good place again. We should be blessed for the privilege to serve our Lord in this specific way and want to shine for Him. Say yes to the calling always and trust that He will give you the strength, courage, wisdom and joy to carry out this calling!

Philippians 2:14-15 (NKJV)

Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,

 Psalm 86:12 (HCSB)

I will praise You with all my heart,

Lord my God, and will honor Your name forever.

I love getting the opportunity to operate in the Spiritual Gifts that God has blessed me with as I serve in ministry. My favorite things are organizing and administrating events, and encouraging others as they serve as volunteers or in other forms of leadership. Other times, I get to spend time in prayer with people, which I also just adore! Then there are other parts of ministry that are not my favorite…like staff cleaning days, ew!

Just like in every other part of life, there are parts of ministry that you don’t just naturally enjoy or love doing. Now, this does not make you a bad person, but it does make you human. Nobody loves to do everything, but while we serve we can find ways to give it our all and make those less than fun parts more enjoyable.

Although I did not particularly enjoy cleaning, days I did quite love the people that I got to serve with as I wiped, shined and mopped. This helped me take my eyes off of myself and serve the Lord joyfully as I used this as an opportunity to spend time with people I love. Women’s Ministry may not always have the opportunity to interact with the High School Ministry and Men’s Ministry might not always get to spend time with the people that serve in the Accounting Ministry. Those random moments that take us out of the “norm” of our ministry callings may seem inconvenient at first, but then become some of the best memories we have while serving!

My exhortation to all of us is to give it our all, make every single task we complete an act of worship and praise the Lord with our whole heart as we do the fun things and not so fun things. We will be pleasing in His sight when our hearts and attitudes are in the right place and it will honor His name as we do the work of the ministry!

Colossians 3:23 (HCSB)

Whatever you do, do it enthusiastically, as something done for the Lord and not for men.

John 11:13-15 (CEV)

Surrender your heart to God,

turn to him in prayer,

And give up your sins –

even those you do in secret.

Then you won’t be ashamed;

you will be confident and fearless.

I love reading about the women of the Bible that had completely surrendered lives. Lately, I have been completely entranced by the lives of Ruth, Esther and Mary. Each lady demonstrates what godly character should look like on an everyday basis and they are fully devoted to their Lord, not what others may think of their actions and callings. They serve faithfully, walk the path that God has placed for them and seek Him with their whole heart as they do His will.

Ruth left all that was known and familiar to her to follow the path the Lord had in mind. She did not stay in a place of comfort or ease, but went on the journey that God gave to her so that she could be a godly example to us ladies. In her we see a surrendered life, filled with devotion and loyalty to God and family.

Esther took on a calling and surrendered her actual life to be used for the glory of God. Not only did she marry some guy that she did not actually fall in love with, but she also saved her people and went before the king (her husband mind you) to save them, knowing that her life was on the line. She simply said, “If I perish, I perish.” Could you live a life that surrendered to God, trusting and obeying when you had no idea what the outcome would be? We obviously know that she survived, but Esther did not know that as she walked the path God placed before her. What a life of faith and obedience!

Finally, Mary is obviously surrendered to God, calling herself a handmaiden of the Lord; she was willing to take her outward reputation being slandered and tarnished for the ultimate glory of the Lord as she gave birth to our Savior. Could you surrender to the point where people would judge and think ill of you, even if you knew that your calling was of the Lord? Would you risk your outward façade of being a “good girl” to do the will of the Father?

I encourage you to read each of these accounts in the bible (Ruth, Esther and Luke 1) and really ask yourself if you would fully surrender to Godand let Him take hold of your life. Ask Him if you are truly willing relinquish your rights and allow Him to let your life unfold before your eyes for His will and good purpose. He will search your heart and show you the truth; however, if you know the answer is “no” (and it is for most of us), pray throughout the week about how you can surrender certain areas of your life to Jesus and let Him move mightily on your behalf. You may be surprised where He takes you and how your life shines (or sparkles) for the Lord!

Listen to this song (one of my favorite versions) and ask God what you need to surrender to Him.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsKw0c7mPhQ

John 8:7 (NKJV)

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let Him throw a stone at her first.”

I love when I hear about people that are new in their faith growing little by little in their belief in the Lord. It is such a blessing to see their hearts get more understanding about the character of Jesus. I also love when someone that has been battling and struggling with a life-dominating sin issue gets victory as they cling to Jesus. It is such a blessing to see God do a work in people’s lives. I love that He continues to do work in my life and struggles too!

I think it is healthy and a genuine show of our relationship with the Lord when we can have hearts of compassion as we see people have sin issues and not judge, condemn or be ready to write them off as a failure. I love how Jesus does that with us…so why are we unable to do that with one-another? We should always look to edify, encourage and redirect as we see people get sucked back into things of the world. The Lord does not just say, “I knew she couldn’t handle this. I’m over her”, so why should we always have our self-righteous fingers ready to point out when someone stumbles?

As we walk with the Lord and continue to be sanctified each and every day, let us not forget that we too are works in progress, just like the people we decide “aren’t Christian enough” or “must not really be saved”. We are all being made into a reflection of our Savior as we learn to trust and obey. So, let’s be a blessing, pray for one another rather than point fingers when someone falls into sin and be the body of Christ that is so filled with the kindness, gentleness and unconditional love of Jesus that people actually want to know our Lord, because of our gracious witness that shows godly character and humility.

Here are a few scriptures to look at as we walk this walk of faith.

Luke 6:37-38 (NKJV)

Ephesians 5:19 (NKJV)

Philippians 1:6 (NKJV)

Read John 8:1-11 about the woman caught in adultery.

Also, please make sure to keep people in prayer if you know they are struggling. Keep those that are in the spotlight in prayer as well. Lastly, keep those that have walked away from the Lord in prayer and keep interceding for them; with God all things are possible!

Are you always waiting, watching and ready to point out sin in someone else’s life and decide whether or not they are truly saved? Are you aware of the fact that only God really knows? What if people always pointed out your area of struggle and said the same about you? How would you feel?