iShineInMinistry

Proverbs 29:23 KJV

A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.

Remember when you first started working in full-time ministry and all you felt was inadequate, ill-equipped and nervous about making a mistake because you knew yourself and God could use someone so much better than you? Remember when you literally prayed about everything? From the perfect scripture for a counseling all the way down to the perfect color scheme for your bible study fliers? You were clinging mercilessly to the Lord, completely surrendered to Him and His plan, so thankful that He would bother to use someone like you...it was such a blessing to be where He had you!

Then, as you faithfully followed His plan, wonderful and miraculous things began to take place in ministry. People began to praise you for your diligence in being the Lord's servant. You started doing so well that the praises and compliments began to go to your head instead of to God's glory and a shift in your heart started to take place. Now, instead of being a dedicated servant, you are the queen of telling everyone else what to do and fishing for praise for other's who are truly doing the work of the ministry. You neglect ministry things that you deem "unimportant" and chase after serving opportunities that allow you to have spotlight, be seen and complimented. You have moved from a humble servant to someone that works in their own strength for their own agenda...in the midst of it you make sure to inject proper "Christianese" to give others the impression that you are there for God's purpose and not your own accolades.

Now before you get annoyed and stop reading, please know that this can happen to any of us. We can be so joyful and humble in one season, then not even realize we have morphed into a woman that has a spiritually elite attitude because of their ministry title. We all have to guard our hearts from this horrible pattern. If we don't, pride will continue to fester and then satan has us right where he wants us. Once we have brought ourselves up to a higher plateau, the enemy waits to push us off the spiritual skyscraper we have built for ourselves. He usually does it with a ministry-ruining sin and then we are brought low in the worst way possible. Most pastors and leaders don't plan to do the sinful things that eventually end their ministry life, but misplaced humility is the perfect way for satan to pull you off your self-made pedestal through sin.

So, as we serve and do the will of God let's always make sure that we are humble, constantly keep our hearts right with God and keep very short accounts of sin...especially the sin of pride! Let's remember that sweet, humble lady we were when we first began in ministry and always desire to have that same surrendered heart.

Happy serving!