June 6, 2007

What Is Your Ministry?

It's true, every one of us has a ministry and I pray that through this post, you'll be taken nearer your destiny, nearer your purpose and nearer the person you want to grow up to become.

I know the term ministry is used very loosely and for most people, when they think of ministry, they think of Pastor's, Church Leaders, Evangelists and more important, people who work within the Church.

But ministry goes way beyond all of this.

Ministry simply means service.

Although I have an Internet ministry, I'm also an entrepreneur and Internet Business Consultant. I provide a service to business owners and ministries who want to put up a blog, which incidentally is just another kind of website - a lot easier to put up and cheaper and easier to maintain.

And I stopped distinguishing between my business and ministry some months now, because I recognise that what I do in my business is just one aspect of my ministry.

Paul tells us in the Book of Colossians (3:23-24) that

"Whatever may be your task, work at it heartily (from the soul) as [something done] for the Lord and not for men,

Knowing [with all certainty] that it is from the Lord [and not from men] that you will receive the inheritance which is your [real] reward. [The one whom] you are actually serving [is] the Lord Christ (the Messiah). Amplified Version

Do you know what this says? It says that when you're in business or doing a service, in ministry, carrying out chores in the home or wherever, that those you're serving may not always appreciate you, your time and sometimes your sacrifice.

But what God is say is "don't worry about them, do it as though you're doing it for me."

I do want to clarify one thing though - God never gives you permission to be treated as a doormat but you have to learn, via the Holy Spirit, how to distinguish the difference between being a service to someone and being at their "back and call." Perhaps that's something I'll cover in a future post, but I'm sure I have done already.

It does mean that sometimes we'll have to take the rough with the smooth and, I've experienced that in the past few days. In fact, I confess that I almost threw in the towel on one of the projects I was working on yesterday. But as I walked away from my desk, Colossians 3:23 came to mind. I thanked the Holy Spirit for His direction and set about trying to complete the project with a different attitude and a different mind.

Guess what? What seemed to be a mountain, turned into a molehill! Before I knew it, what seemed like many more hours of work, suddenly looked like the finishing line in the horizon. It's true I've not done yet, but I've jumped the hurdles that were plaguing my mind and now I'm on a clear path toward the ribbon and, I'm running!

So let me ask you, what's your ministry? In what areas can you provide a service that will benefit others and ultimately benefit you?

Until next time, Blessings,