Ministry!

A young man was once asked what he does for the Lord: what exactly is his ministry? He looked confused and explained he does not have a ministry, but he does have a call to be an usher; and that is the department he works in his church. The same question was posed to a sister in the same church and she declared she had a calling to sing, hence her being in the choir. She was asked if she knew this was her ministry. She was taken aback, as she felt ministry is when you have a special call to run a church or the paraphernalia and hype that go with what we call ‘ministry’ today. Of course, with the young man and woman’s thoughts on what a ministry is it will not be farfetched to conclude that they might not fulfill theirs since they believe it is for some people and limited to the church setting alone; unless they come to understand what ministry is they would be underutilized and not succeed in their posts as any wind of doctrine will blow them off their marks. There are so many who believe that until they attain certain levels of spirituality and have certain paraphernalia on ground before they can begin ministry. Some believe or imagine they have been called to specific aspects of ministry, thus neglecting other aspects. No wonder the competitive spirit is running circles round the sons of God. Friend, your life is your ministry: Ministry is actually the outflow of your life! With this definition, we can safely conclude that every man born of a woman has a ministry. When Jesus Christ called you, He called you to be His regular companion. Friend, there are no excuses, all of us are called to be warriors for the KING to do battle with the enemy. Every position we occupy: in school, at work, home – we are all given a mandate to ‘occupy till He comes’. This we can only effectively do with our lives! And every man will give an account before the Judge of the earth how they fulfilled their ministries! In 2 Timothy 4:5, Apostle Paul declared: “But as for you, keep a clear head about everything, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.” This shows clearly that the onus is on us to fulfill our ministries so as not to be disqualified at the end of the race. No wonder Apostle Paul had to visit the Apostles in Jerusalem to be assured that he was not running in error. Friend, this matter is crucial in the heart of the Lord that was why He gave the warning in Matthew 7:22-23 that a lot will be turned back on the last day because their actions in carrying out their ministry though good were not however, authorized by the Lord. The testimony of your life is more important than ‘anything you are doing’ for the Lord. A preacher’s life testimony is much more important than anything he preaches. A lot will not make it not because they were in error in their actions, but their lives belie the truth in their actions in service to the Lord be it in Church, school or work place. Paul declared in 2Corinthians 11:2 – “For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as chaste virgin to Christ.” Chaste virgins are pure, clean, modest, undefiled, trusting and submissive containers ready and fit for the Master’s use. Friend, if your life does not attract same testimony there is a need to revaluate and quickly return back to the Lord so that you would be accepted at the end. The testimonies of our lives are more important than any work we may be carrying out in the name of the Lord. If indeed Christ is the life you live, then you must return to Him to teach and direct you on how to live it in service to Him. God bless you.