For the past 7 months, we have had all kinds of ministries assigned to us by our host. From writing English lesson plans to teaching English, loving on kids, preaching in churches, evangelizing, painting, manual labor, kids programs, women’s programs, and anything you can really think of, we’ve done it. I have loved to see how Ministry can look so different each day and each month, and how when you incorporate Jesus into everything you do, your life becomes Ministry.
This was a big pull for me to go on the World Race: to figure out what type of Ministry the Lord was calling me to post-Race. And I have absolutely loved getting to see how the Lord’s hand is in so many places.
This month, we are in Nepal. We are working with an incredible organization which focuses on bringing light and hope into the red light district. They focus on loving on the girls in the Dance Bars and offering them a way out. They teach these women new skills and trades as an alternative way to make money. More than anything, their heart is to show each woman how loved, valued, and cared for they are by Jesus Christ.
The ministry’s other focus is bringing Kingdom by sharing the gospel and loving on the people of the Nepali slums. We go into this community to host kids programs and do door-to-door evangelism and encouragement. This is something I have found a passion for over the past couple months.
We have ministry on the schedule, but this month we have a lot of freedom. Ministry in the bars is at night and the slums are just a portion of the day. This leaves us with a lot of free time. Our days and off time is spent in prayer, asking the Lord what he wants us to do with the space.
Yesterday, I was very convicted. My teammate and I went to a coffee shop for coffee and to get some things done. We had a good bit of free time before our ministry that night. As I was walking into town, I was thinking how easy it would be to just let this month happen. For it to go by, and for me to do the bare minimum, to go to ministry when I was told, and not make the most use of the free time I have. But I don’t want that, I don’t want to scape by. I want to make the most use of my time. I want more.
I felt the Lord giving me a practice month for what life back at home might look like.
I will have things to do, time to do them, deadlines, meetings, and a busy schedule, etc.
But what does a life of ministry look like? when you don’t have a set ministry with a host, pastor, or someone telling you where to go next to preach, to evangelize, or to love on the needy. What does the day by day life look like to make ministry a part of your life?
What does it mean to ask the Lord each day for direction and discernment? What does it look like to listen to him to see where he is asking you to go or who he wants you to talk to?
I don’t know what life will look like when I get back to America. I don’t know where I will work, where I will live, or what I will be doing. There is a lot I don’t know yet about what the future will hold, but one thing I am sure of is I want my life to be ministry.
I want to wake up each day asking the Lord for help. I want to love and share Jesus with everyone I meet, regardless if someone is telling me to or if it is a part of my job. To not have to have a set time or day to do what God has called each one of us to do. To love on the least of these, to declare his glory, and to make disciples of all nations (including America).
I want that ministry to be my life, and I want my life to be ministry. But I want to encourage you, that you don’t have to go anywhere to make that your life as well. How drastically different could your life look if you changed your perspective to see the needs around you and asked the Lord for help meeting those needs? What would it look like if you made ministry your life too?
