MINISTRY || min•is•try
noun –
• the work or vocation of a minister of religion
• the period of tenure of a minister of religion
• the spiritual WORK or SERVICE of any Christian or a group of Christians, especially evangelism
In my mind, ministry was always associated with and focused on work and service, but the way God ministers to us and the way Christ did ministry is focused on a relationship.
I use to define ministry as working with volunteer organizations or churches, during a set amount of time, giving of time and gifts; serving through manual labor, playing with kids or reading them a bible story, leading a bible study, feeding the homeless, etc. Although these are certainly areas where we can shed God’s light, we’ve missed a lot of opportunities in daily living.
In the last few countries and specifically in Brazil, God has been redefining for me the meaning and act of ministry. This past month on the Race, God has been so generous in the way he has been giving my squad ministry opportunities in the most unexpected places. Read about one of these instances in my squadmate, Kaitlyn’s blog!
The nature of unsung hero months has made the race very different than the usual route. Although we do get to work along set ministries in some countries, we also get to do a lot of letting God just lead us to where we need to be to meet new people who can become future contacts for the WR. Sure, they don’t always have kids for us to play with or a shed somewhere that needs to be cleaned out and painted, but they each have hearts that need to be ministered to. So that’s what we’ve been focusing on. Joining in on how God is working in the hearts of those who we encounter and speaking truth and encouragement into their lives. Ministry is not a check list item to being a good Christian. It’s a position of the heart in accordance to how Christ called us to follow his example of living. Ministry is a lifestyle of love.
I was intrigued and spent a few days looking closer at how Jesus went about ministry. In Matthew 3 and 4, we see that before his ministry, Jesus was baptized and tempted. I realized in these passages that Christ had 1. committed himself to his Father’s work and displayed this publicly through baptism, and 2. was tempted and tried by the devil and afterwards was ministered to by angels. These two things are the first examples Jesus sets for us in ministry. We must first commit our lives to the Father, and then in life and in trials, let God minister to us. Only after he had been baptised and tempted did Jesus begin his ministry, (Matthew 4:12).
In Matthew 4:17, we see that “Jesus began to preach, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.'” Everything he did and said from this point on centered on the fact that the kingdom of God is near and that we must be ready for it. All of Jesus’ ministry — the preaching, healing of the sick, providing for the poor, and the breaking of bread and conversing with his disciples were all done to prepare the people and to be an example of someone who lives in God’s kingdom. He did everything out of love as he sought to display kingdom living. What a great example he has set for us! Though some of his ministry was providing for earthly needs, he was always more concerned about their hearts. His provision for their earthly needs was an overflow of his love for their soul and his desire for their hearts to know the love of God.
So my new definition of ministry (still currently being grown and refined) —
MINISTRY
verb –
• stepping out in boldness and obedience when the Holy Spirit gives you the honor of carrying out his work in the life of others, no matter where, who, or what it is He’s asking you to do
• speaking truth, love, and life into the heart of person, and letting that overflow into providing what you can for their earthly needs
If God is about redeeming the world back to himself, then the Holy Spirit is at work in every life, some people have just chosen to completely silence his voice and listen to their own. Ministry, in the new sense of the word, is our opportunity to resurrect the voice of the Holy Spirit in someone’s life by speaking truth, love, and life into them. It’s not meant to be an intimidating task but more of an unbelievable honor that God would let us take part in such an intimate and yet cosmic plan to bring his children home to his kingdom.
Ministry isn’t about the actions, but about the truths we speak that penetrate to the heart and soul where the Holy Spirit is working.
So, although we have not had many opportunities in the last few countries to do ministry in the old sense of the word, God has been faithful in leading us to people whose hearts we have gotten to minister to. He has also been ever so faithful in ministering to my heart and my squadmates’ hearts! Check out what he has been teaching some of them in this video, “What is God Teaching You?” from my squadmate, Chelsea!
For Christ and his kingdom,
Susan
